New Alpha in Town
by kjg1194
Summary: Scott left Beacon Hills after defeating Gerard and the Kanima but now he's back and his problems have followed him home as well.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Alternate ending to season two. Erica and Boyd don't run away and no alpha pack. Something happens that makes Scott leave Beacon Hills. Pretty much everything else stays the same though. **

** Scott**

Not a day goes by that Scott doesn't think about Beacon hills and the life that he left behind over a year ago now. He missed the town with all his heart for the first few months but after the death of his mother he couldn't seem to stay there among all the painful memories that evoked a mixture of emotions in him. He felt anger first and foremost. Anger towards the Argents and the fact that they were the reason that Gerard ended up in Beacon Hills in the first place. His emotions became more complicated when it came to Allison, however.

He could not blame her for the death of his mother yet he could not forgive the sense of betrayal that he felt when she decided to side with her psychotic grandfather, oblivious to his dark and evil nature. Scott understood her pain after her mother's death yet he could not bring himself to forgive her and after they pulled his mother's body from the charred remains of his house he couldn't face the sympathetic looks or the apologies of his friends any longer. The very next morning he left without telling anyone, leaving the seemingly quiet and peaceful town in his wake. He knew they would be sad and feel betrayed at first, _especially Stiles, _he thought to himself with a smile as he turned on the ignition in his mother's car, well now his, but he knew deep down that he was doing the right thing. At least Stiles knew he was going as he took the time to stop at his best friend's house and say goodbye to his loyal friend with a heavy heart. He knew that Stiles would understand and eventually, after tears and much attempted persuasion on Stiles' part the pair finally parted ways.

Yet, here he stood almost sixteen months later on the outskirts of his former home as rain beat down upon him and plastered his dark hair to his forehead, blood trickling down the sleeve of his navy hoodie and dripping onto the road. He winced as he shifted the strap of his rucksack to his other shoulder and it lightly brushed the wound that began at his shoulder and ended at the crook of his elbow.

He turned and started to walk towards the bright neon lights that signalled the location of a rundown motel just outside of the town. "I've stayed in worse," he muttered darkly to himself as he approached the front of the motel and silently prayed that someone would be on duty at this late hour. Someone must have been looking out for him above as he saw a light on in the reception.

A bell chimed merrily as he entered the reception and a young woman smiled nicely at him. "What can I do for you?" she asked pleasantly. Scott smiled half-heartedly in her direction and said, "A room for the night." He handed her his credit card and after a second she nodded to herself and handed him his credit card back along with a key. _Number 13, great,_ Scott thought darkly, smiling to himself at the irony of the number in relation to his current situation "Thanks," he muttered, not caring whether or not the woman noticed the large would in his arm as he turned or the small pool of blood that had gathered below him as he paid for his room.

Once inside his room, nothing fancy but not as bad as he had expected it to be, he dropped his rucksack and collapsed onto the bed with an exhausted sigh. He wanted nothing more than to sleep but he knew that he had to clean his wound sooner rather than later. So with a tired huff he pulled himself off the bed and looked around his room. A dark wooden table stood in the corner with a large retro television sitting on it. To the left of his bed was a sink along with various other kitchen utensils and lastly he spotted another door that he assumed was the bathroom.

He stopped at his rucksack and pulled out a few bandages and a bottle of whiskey and headed for the bathroom. He flicked on the light and was greeted with a rusted toiled in the corner accompanied by a cracked, fake marble sink and a tiny shower booth in the corner. Scott sighed and peeled his hoodie off and then his black t-shirt and opened the bottle of whiskey. He gritted his teeth while holding his arm over the sink and poured the amber liquid over his wound. A gasp escaped from him accompanied by a weak moan as he arched his back in pain while his eyes changed from deep brown to a blood red. When the pain subsided and he stopped shaking and set down the bottle and began to dress and bandage the wound before weakly leaving the bloody sink behind, bottle in hand and collapsing once more on his hard mattress, not even bothering to clean up after himself. He turned on his back and blindly reached for the bottle of jack and taking a large gulp from the bottle, savouring the feeling as the alcohol stung his dry throat on the way down.

_This is my life now _he thought grimly as he took another deep swig from the bottle. His tummy rumbled with hunger and he looked at his bandaged arm. _Maybe you might heal if I had eaten or slept in the last three days. _

Just as he was about to settle down to sleep he was broken from his alcohol muddled thoughts by the sharp ringing of his I-phone. "Hello," he answered in a low, slightly slurred voice. "Scott? Is that you?" came the worried reply of a girl's voice from the other end. "Yeah it's me," he replied tiredly, the half bottle of whiskey he drank starting to take effect. "Have you been drinking again?" came the accusation from the other end, a hint of worry also underlying the tone. "No," he huffed in an unconvincing tone before sighing and saying, "only a small bit." There was silence on the line for a moment before he heard the girls voice once more, urgent and firm. "Scott, listen to me. You need to get your head in the game. The rest of us are in California, safe for the moment. They are coming for you and if the find you then they will kill you, you know that, right?" Scott rolled his eyes before replying, "Look I only had a small bit to drink alright? And I know the danger I'm in but right now I don't care. I told you that I have connections here and I'll be ok for now. But right now I got to go," he said before hanging up the phone without hesitation and letting sleep envelope him for the first time in three days.

** Derek**

Derek could tell that there was another Alpha in Beacon Hills from the moment that it entered the town. He knew that the rest of his pack could sense it too. Isaac looked up nervously before asking "Is it a new pack?" Derek shook his head uncertainly. "I'm not sure. We can only sense the alpha because it has the strongest scent. There may be others with it but we'll have to get closer to be sure," he replied. Isaac nodded and Boyd looked up from his seat in the corner of Derek's loft. "Let's go now. We've had nothing to do all summer and I'm actually so bored I'm looking forward to school starting up again," he complained while rising from his chair. Erica nodded her head vigorously in confirmation also. Derek looked at them one by one before nodding his head and saying "let's go then."

They ran in pack formation with Derek at the head and Boyd at the rear flanked by Isaac and Erica. The followed the scent to the outskirts or the town and they ended up outside a dirty, rundown motel right at the edge of Beacon Hills. The alpha's scent was strongest here and was mixed with the pungent smell of blood, alcohol and sweat. Derek wrinkled his nose in disgust. _A lone alcoholic alpha, _he smirked to himself. _That's a first._ Just as he was about to turn and tell the pack it was nothing to worry about and that it was just a lone alpha passing through he froze and stared intently at room number 13 where he thought he could smell a vaguely familiar scent.

It struck a chord within him so deep that he thought he had long forgotten the scent of _that_ particular wolf. _It can't be him_, Derek thought. _If he did return then surely he would have come and seen one of us, one of his pack. But he's an alpha now, _a voice in the back of his head reminded him. _And if he really cared about any of you then he wouldn't have left in the first place._ Derek shook his head removing the troubled expression from his face before turning back to the rest of his pack, hoping that they did not notice the familiar scent wafting from the motel. The three betas looked at him expectantly for answers. "It's nothing, just a rogue alpha passing through. It holds no threat," he said curtly before he set his trademark frown on his face and took off running back towards his apartment with his pack following closely.

** Scott**

Scott awoke the following morning with a throbbing head and the familiar taste of jack in his mouth. With a groan he rolled over and literally fell out of his bed, smacking his head off the bedside locker forcing him to curse heavily before he staggered upright. His throat was dry and he looked around desperately for something to drink before his sleepy eyes finally fell on the half-finished bottle of jack on his bedside table before shrugging and picking up the bottle. "I'm gonna regret this," he slurred before downing the rest of the bottle with two gulps.

After he was finished he searched through his rucksack before finding a fresh towel and some fresh clothes before stumbling into the shower and running the cold water. After his shower he felt marginally better but his headache persisted and it was only worsened by his fresh attack on the whiskey which was now starting to take its toll on him once more. He looked in the mirror at his arm and was relieved to see that the wound had mostly healed overnight and now it was only a long red scab which would probably scar. _Oh well, it's not like I don't want to ruin my flawless skin or anything, _he muttered to himself in the mirror which showed the many scars which adorned his torso and back.

Scott pulled on a long sleeved grey shirt and a pair of jeans before making his way out of his room and over to the reception, not even bothering to lock the door. He entered the reception and walked up to the desk where a different, older woman looked him up and down with disapproving eyes. _God, I must look drunker than I thought,_ he realised grimly before handing the woman his credit card and saying "I'll be staying here for the next week." She nodded and swiped the credit card before handing it back to him and stomping off muttering about drugs and teenagers. Scott smirked in her direction before placing his credit card back in his wallet and leaving the reception and looking for a place to get something to eat. Just on cue his tummy rumbled once more and Scott said, "I hear ya buddy. I'm getting something to eat now." With that he took off, staggering slightly, into the centre of the town looking for a café or somewhere with food.

He eventually found a café where he ordered some pancakes and coffee from a teenage girl who took one glance at him, blushed, and didn't look up once more. He smiled to himself thinking back on a time when he was shy and innocent like that, wondering would he trade his life now for the one he had then. Sure his life sucks at the moment. He's being hunted by a pack of hungry wolves and an enraged group of hunters and the chances of him surviving until the end of the month were slim. But then again he remembered the life he had before the bite. He remembered a life where he was not popular, his only friend was Stiles, he wasn't good at lacrosse or anything really and nothing exciting ever happened.

When he thought about it he probably wouldn't want it any other way than it was now. Sure he was a teenage drunk with a death warrant on his head but the last two years of his life were the most exciting he had ever had, with the exception being the death of his mother.

The young waitress returned with his pancakes and a cup of steaming coffee and blushed furiously when Scott said "thanks." The coffee and food helped to sober him up and settle his stomach and he left the café after twenty minutes, throwing a ten dollar note on the table and smiling at the shy waitress on the way out. Once out in the fresh air he sighed and stopped in his tracks. _I guess there's nothing left to do except stop in a liquor store on the way home, buy more jack and patiently wait for my impending doom, _he thought harshly and that was exactly what he did.


	2. Chapter 2

**Scott**

Scott was rudely awoken just before noon by a loud banging on his door. His alcohol clouded senses became sharper and he closed his eyes before detecting the scent that he was expecting to smell not long after entering Beacon Hills. It was his territory after all. Scott groaned as the knocking became more impatient before pulling on his jeans and a light blue shirt before pulling open the door with a scowl on his face.

Derek was just as Scott remembered him, sans the leather jacket. His usual frown was still etched across his face and a light stubble covered his cheeks and jaws, only slightly shorter than the stubble that now covered Scott's cheeks and jaw. His shoulders still hunched forward in his uncompromising way and his hands were buried deep within the pockets of his black jeans. Scott smirked slightly before standing aside and letting the alpha in.

"Where are the rest of them?" he asked Derek, not bothering to greet him. Derek's brow furrowed upon hearing Scott's unfriendly tone and he looked around the room uncomfortably, avoiding meeting Scott's eyes. Derek's eyes lingered momentarily on the empty bottle of jack before he finally met Scott's eyes. "I didn't tell them that you were here," he stated simply. Scott opened his mouth to ask him why before he cut Scott off. "I figured that if you wanted anything to do with us then you would have come to us first."

Scott nodded his head and looked Derek in the eyes. "Thanks. I'm not staying here long anyway. Circumstances…..forced me to come here and I promise that I'll be out of your hair before you know it." Derek nodded his head, a sharp, birdlike movement before once more letting his eyes roam around the room. "Not the nicest of rooms that I've seen," stated Derek dryly. "Then again, I slept in a dilapidated, half-burned house so I guess I can't really say anything."

"Do you not stay in the Hale house anymore?" Scott asked, not really caring but trying to make small talk and delay the inevitable question that he knew would be soon coming his way. "No. I bought a loft downtown and we, as in the pack and I, stay there now. Except for Peter. Peter stays in his own apartment though. Too much noise in my loft," Derek added with a sneer. Scott smiled and looked around with nothing else to talk about. He was getting bored of this little catch up and was debating whether or not to ask Derek to leave. Just then the dreaded question arrived and Scott failed at hiding his eye-roll which Derek saw.

"Why did you leave us, Scott?" he asked bluntly. "And while you're at it you might explain to me why the hell you're here. I can sense you're an alpha. Do you not have a pack of your own now that you should be running around with instead of here, in _my _territory," Derek spat, unable to control his anger any longer. Scott just smiled before replying. "Firstly, I don't have to explain anything to you. Secondly, you know why I left in the first place. She was the only family that I had left and I just had to get out of here after she died. There was nothing here for me anymore."

"We were here," Derek retorted, stung by his bitter words. "Your pack was here." "My pack?" Scott asked with a sneer. "When was I ever truly part of your _pack?_ Was it when you used me to get to Peter and kill him, becoming alpha. Really? You expect me to believe that wasn't the plan all along?" Derek was taken aback by angry tone of Scott's voice and the anger pulsating from him focused on Derek. "Was it when you used my help to stop Gerard and kill the Kanima? Face it Derek, I was only ever considered a part of your pack when you needed me or wanted something from me." Derek opened his mouth to retort and defend himself but Scott held up his hand once more, silencing him. "But you are right. This is your territory and for that reason I'll give you an honest explanation on why I'm here. But the others deserve an explanation too so call the Argents as well as Stiles and your pack and I'll tell you everything. I'll meet you at your old house in three hours."

Derek nodded curtly and stormed out without another word and Scott breathed a sigh of relief and sat back down on his bed, glad to be in his own company once more. Ever since she was taken he enjoyed his own solace and his alcohol more than other people. He shook his head, forcing himself to think about something else other than her before rising from his hard mattress and rummaging through his rucksack. He pulled out a fresh syringe and a tiny vile of wolfsbane and pulled the poisonous liquid into the syringe and injecting it into a vein in his forearm. He cried out in pain as the liquid rushed straight into his bloodstream and burned throughout his body like acid.

After a few minutes of agonising pain he finally uncurled out of his ball and managed to weakly sit up, still shaking and covered in a light sheen of sweat. About six months ago he started to ingest tiny amounts of wolfsbane. Usually he would mix it with water and drink it or he would pour it over food. The first time he did it he almost died and was incapacitated for a week. However over the months he had managed to build up some of a tolerance and now he began to inject it pure into his blood system. It was more painful and fast acting but each time he felt himself grow stronger afterwards and his recovery time shortened, even when he began to move to more potent types.

After ten minutes he was able to finally stand and he pulled himself into the shower and took a long, cold, invigorating shower which made him feel considerably better. Three hours later he found himself trudging up the familiar dirt track and all too soon he saw the rundown house looming ominously in the distance. His heartbeat picked up slightly before he steadied himself and controlled his breathing before preparing himself for the whirlwind of emotions that were about to be awoken.

Upon entering the clearing the first thing he noticed were Chris and Allison, respective guns and arrows trained on him. The familiar beat of Allison's heart struck a chord he thought was long buried but he shook the feeling away. Now was not the time to be sentimental or emotional. He then noticed another boy, maybe slightly younger than him standing close to Allison with a gun also trained on him. Scott raised his eyebrows slightly and glanced at Derek but he just shrugged slightly as if to say "What did you expect."

His eyes then roamed to the rest of the group. Derek was at the front of his pack, Peter at his right flanked by Isaac, Boyd and Erica and Stiles stood to their left along with Dr. Deaton and Lydia. He was surprised by the vet's presence but he was relieved to see that at least Stiles and Deaton seemed happy to see him. The rest…..judging by their expressions, not so much. He figured that Derek told them about their not-so-friendly catch-up earlier and he wasn't surprised by their hostility.

A few seconds of awkward silence followed as Scott looked at the group with detachment and an air of boredom most definitely detected by the wolves. "Why are you here," Derek asked bluntly, breaking the awkward silence and getting straight to the point.

Scott sighed, wishing this was over with and he could return to his room and drown his problems with more alcohol but he squared his shoulders, casting one look around the group before locking eyes with Derek. "There's a bounty on my head among hunters," he stated and everyone in the group gasped slightly. Isaac and Erica looked around nervously, as if expecting a group of hunters to burst forth from the deep forest and attack them. The young hunter beside Allison gripped his gun tighter and Scott heard his heartbeat quicken slightly. "Why?" asked Chris through gritted teeth.

"Because I killed a hunter," Scott replied without emotion. Allison gasped slightly and Chris pulled the hammer back on his gun. Scott stared at him unfazed while the others looked between the hunters and the young wolf nervously. "So you killed a human," accused the young hunter with a surprisingly deep voice, considering his slight stature. Scott looked at him properly for the first time. He must have been just about eighteen, if even that. He had short brown hair and a confident stance and he was quite handsome, even Scott had to admit.

"That depends on what you classify as a human being," Scott snarled at the young man. His heartbeat spiked in response to Scott's harsh tone but he did not move an inch, his gun trained on Scott's head. "He took someone from me, a friend of mine that I met not long after I left Beacon Hills. Here you hunters follow the code, you co-exist and even co-operate together. You have no idea what it's really like out there. New York, California, all these places are full of hunters who kill for fun. They don't follow a code. They don't care if you've never hurt a human being. This is a game to them. They hunt and kill for the pleasure of taking a life, not to keep the peace," Scott almost shouted at the young hunter while letting his gaze roam across the group who stared at him intently.

"I met her after three weeks on the road, just outside New York. They only werewolf that I met that wasn't either rabid from killing humans or just killing for the fun of it. Three months we spent together, just the two of us, until she was taken by hunters on the full moon." Silence encroached the Hale house once more as Scott began to pace back and forth, thinking of what to say next. "I found him though," he added with a smile that looked more like a grimace. "Him and his little werewolf torture chamber hidden underground in the sewers. I didn't kill his friends, though. I saved that honour for him. I fought him and it wasn't pretty but I won. I ripped his heart from his chest with my bare hands and watched the light leave his eyes….But she wasn't there," Scott added with a sigh and downcast eyes.

"That's when I met up with another pack on my way out of New York, running for my life with a mob of hunters on my tail. They took me in and they helped me escape and we made it to California. After that I ran with them for a few months. They helped me to forget slightly, but I never truly stopped looking, searching, hoping for see her but I found nothing."

"Where are your pack now?" asked Isaac tentatively. "We split up in California and I left to keep them safe." Everyone looked confused and Derek opened his mouth to ask how leaving would keep them safe when Scott cut him off. "There was a fight between packs for territory. A big fight between us and another pack. I killed one of their members." Once again a shocked silence found its way into the clearance. Even the wolves seemed to back up a little bit trying to distance themselves from Scott. "And you're here because the pack are after you as well," Derek finished for him, putting the pieces together.

"Yeah, but not for long," Scott added sharply. "The longer I stay here than the more risk all of you are in. I had to stop and catch up on some sleep but I'll be gone by the end of the week. Probably be dead by the end of the month," Scott added with a shrug, his lack of emotion towards his death causing the others to glance wearily at each other. "We're not going to let you just leave town and die," Derek protested in a firm voice.

Scott scoffed and shook his head. "What are you going to do, huh? Tie me up? Lock me in the basement of your house?" Scott asked scathingly with a nod underneath the Hale house. Derek's eyes flashed red for an instant in response to Scott but he stayed silent. "That's what I thought," Scott said with a smirk. "Give me one scenario where I stay and everything works out fine. You think you had it bad with Peter and the Argents and the Kanima?" Peter shifted uncomfortably from the mention of his name.

"The lot of you wouldn't survive a second against them. Anyone with any sort of link or association to me will end up dead. Period." Derek looked Scott up and down before his eyes turned red. "This is my territory now," he said. "You cannot come in here and tell us what we can and can't do after all that we have been through." Scott shook his head and muttered "Idiot," under his breath, just loud enough for the rest to hear. "What did you say?" asked Derek with a growl.

"I said that you're an idiot and there's nothing that you can do to stop me from leaving Beacon Hills. You wouldn't stand a chance against me." Scott's statement hung in the air like a bad odour and everyone could feel the shift in the atmosphere. Derek's stance became more of a crouch as he started to transform. Scott realised he risked a fight by threatening the alpha on his own territory, regardless of their past friendship. Scott started to crouch also in preparation for the fight. This needed to be done, however. He had to show them he wasn't the Scott they knew sixteen months ago. He was harsher and colder and he wasn't about to let Derek tell him what to do. The rest of the group stood back understanding that this was a challenge that had to be settled between the two wolves.

With a roar Derek lunged for the younger, smaller wolf. Scott hand expected him to do so and easily moved out of the way of Derek. Derek stumbled past and before he could right himself Scott turned and kicked his right leg, forcing it to buckle and he then grabbed the back of Derek's head and slammed it through the branch of a tree nearby. Derek was dazed for a second, stunned by the speed of the smaller wolf. Scott stepped back with a smirk and letting him stand once more, not even bothering to transform and waste more energy than he needed to prove his point.

Derek shook his head and he faced Scott once more, anger pulsating through his veins. He lunged for Scott again but this time the young alpha ducked and caught Derek in the midriff, lifting him and slamming him into the ground with such force it seemed to shake the whole clearing. He then punched Derek once, splitting his lip, twice breaking his nose with a sickening _snap_, and a third time before Derek punched Scott in the ribs winding him. This gave Derek the opportunity to buck is hips forcing Scott to lose his grip and then he grabbed the front of his shirt with his clawed hands and threw Scott into a nearby tree, ripping his shirt into the process. Scott didn't miss a beat though, jumping straight up and not giving Derek a chance recover before reigning punches on his face and abdomen. Derek fell when one broke his jaw and when he tried to rise again Scott finally transformed and roared at him, a deep, ear-splitting alpha roar that shook the surrounding forest.

"ENOUGH," he shouted before picking Derek up with ease and throwing him back towards his pack where he landed in a bloodied heap on the floor. The group looked at Scott with a mixture of fear, shock and _awe, _shocked that Scott was an alpha and the fact he had discarded Derek with such apparent ease. His eyes glowed red for a few more seconds before he let his features revert back to their normal state. "I thought you said these were your friends, Scott," drawled a voice from behind him and he recognised two familiar scents emerge from the forest. "Yet here we arrive expecting a friendly chat and your beating up the alpha. Not the way to treat your friends." Scott turned and nodded to his two pack mates emerging from the forest

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed! Please review if you have the time and if you have any suggestions. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Scott**

"Aaron, Emily, what are you doing here," asked Scott in a voice betraying no emotion. "Why looking after you of course," replied Emily by walking up to Scott and hugging him and planting a kiss on his cheek. "We know how much you like fighting and now you've gone and ruined you're lovely blue shirt just to prove a point," she pouted with mock anger. Scott growled but looked down, noticing that the shirt was pretty much ruined. He pulled the torn useless rag off his body and turned to look at the group who all gasped at the same time. _The scars,_ he said to himself with a frown.

"H-how do you have so many scars," asked Chris with genuine curiosity. "I thought your wounds heal." "They do," Scott replied. "Some wounds not as well as others. If the wound is caused by something laced with potent wolfsbane, chances are that you'll heal. Sometimes you won't," he stated, gesturing to two old bullet wounds, one on his shoulder and one on his abdomen. "The rest are from alphas," he said simply. "If the wound is bad enough it might not heal, especially being on the run with a lack of food and sleep. Our natural healing process can become slower than the average humans if we do not sleep and eat enough. I've been on the run for months now and I've been in a few fights. I haven't won them all," he added grimly.

"Scott here is our best fighter," said Aaron, clapping him on the shoulder. "But that's what got him into this mess in the first place. Tell them how you became an alpha, Scott." Emily rolled her eyes and Scott groaned, wanting nothing more to be back in his motel room away from all the shocked stares. "We were fighting for weeks. We seemed to be constantly on the lookout and in fear. Their pack was a lot bigger than ours and I just wanted it all to end. I went to them and asked for them to end the fight and call a truce. The alpha laughed in my face and said he would tear off my head and hang it outside to make an example."

"So you killed him," Stiles added in a low voice. Scott shook his head. "He attacked me. I had no choice. The anger from losing Cora and everything snapped inside me. So instead I tore off his head and hung it outside. I told them that if they come near our pack again I would kill them all. They didn't listen. Said that if they handed me up then they would stop and leave us alone so I left. They've followed me ever since." The group listened intensely to his violent recollection, once more shocked by the life that Scott had lived since he left Beacon Hills.

Suddenly Derek looked up from his spot on the ground and said, "Did you say that the girls name was _Cora?"_ Scott nodded along with his pack. "Oh yeah," said Aaron with a grin. "When we found him he was devastated. You think he's a bad alcoholic now. Back then, just after she was taken and he joined us it was rare if there was a moment he wasn't either drunk or high." Scott glared at Aaron while the others looked at Scott. "Drugs, Scott, really?" asked Stiles while raising his eyebrows. Scott ignored the question.

"Describe Cora to me," Derek said intently, his furrowed brow raising Scott's curiosity as he described Cora. "Red hair, same age as me, about 5' 9", sarcastic, witty sense of humour. She looked kinda like you, actually….." he trailed off, staring at Derek. The more he imagined her face the more he saw the obvious resemblances. Same green eyes, same nose, hell even the same personality. The cogs in Scott's brain worked overtime as he stared at the beaten alpha. "She said her last name was Davis but it was really-" "Hale," Derek finished for him with a troubled look.

"Wait, what!" Stiles asked, his disbelief plain for all to see. "As in Hale like related to you Hale?" Derek shot daggers in his direction, silencing the hyperactive teen. "If they have my sister then you are staying," said Derek in a low voice. "I already told you that I am not staying in this town," Scott nearly shouted, his anger bubbling and his eyes flashing red. Emily placed a hand on his shoulder, a gesture not missed by the group, least of all by Allison who had stayed quiet nearly all of the time and watched Scott with disbelief clear in his eyes.

"It's not just about you anymore, Scott," Emily said while squeezing his shoulder. "If she really is his sister then you can't just leave. You're the only link he has to his sister. You have to take into consideration that he has a right to help find his sister." "If she's alive," Scott added harshly. "These aren't just any hunters though and you know that," he said, turning his back on the rest of the group and looking into Emily's kind, blue eyes. "What do you mean?" asked Chris. Scott turned and looked at the middle-aged man with contempt. "I didn't just go and kill any hunter," Scott said. "I didn't know it at the time and even if I did know his name it wouldn't have meant anything to me." "What was his name," Derek urged, rising from the ground and looking at Scott, his nose still bent at an awkward angle. "John Rookwood," Scott said.

Chris uttered a string of curses and ran his free-hand through his hair, Derek and Deaton exchanged worried looks while the rest of the congregation looked perplexed. "Uh, hello. Want to tell us the big deal here," Stiles said, flailing his arms and looking around. "The Rookwood's are notorious among all supernatural entities," Chris began, looking at Scott before averting his gaze. "They are living legends among all hunters. No other family of hunters has killed more werewolves than the Rookwood's." "Legends among you, maybe. Among the supernatural world they're monsters. Nothing more than vermin to us. Killing the ones that broke the code just wasn't enough though, was it?" Scott said, his hatred for the family of hunters clear in his voice.

"They became bloodthirsty. They started killing every supernatural creature on sight without question. Shoot first and ask questions later, that's their motto," Scott spat in a disgusted tone. "I killed John Rookwood but he's only the tip of the iceberg. It's only a matter of time before the rest of his family find me and they are all just as dangerous and cruel as he is," Scott finished looking at the floor, desperately wishing he was somewhere else right now.

"What are the chances that my sister is still alive," Derek asked, saying out loud what everyone in the group was subconsciously asking themselves. "Fairly good," said Scott, surprising everyone with his answer. "They probably would have killed her but that was before I killed Rookwood. They're out for blood now. My blood. Cora is worth more to them dead than alive at the moment. They haven't caught up to me in a while and I think I have lost them for now. It won't last long, though. They will use her as bait to get to me. They took her that night just for fun but they didn't kill her before I found them. Now I'm the real target and they aren't stupid enough to kill their only real leverage on me."

"So you're wanted dead by a terrifying pack of enraged werewolves _and_ a group of legendary hunters who kill just for the fun of it," Stiles said with an astonished look on his face. Scott nodded. "Jeez dude how the hell did you let that happen? I knew that I should have come with you," he added, shaking his head and pursing his lips. "You're hopeless without me, Scott." Scott smiled slightly at his friend, his first true smile in as long as he could remember. "I like him," Emily whispered in Scott's ear. "Not many people can get you to smile these days," she added.

"I think I've said enough for the time being," Scott said, looking at Derek who nodded in agreement. "If you want me then you know where to find me," he said looking at Derek. "Oh, and Chris," Scott said, turning back and looking at the Argent who looked cautiously at Scott. "I was wondering if I could buy some wolfsbane off you. Used the last of it today." Everyone, even Emily and Aaron looked curiously at Scott. "What the hell do you need wolfsbane for?" asked Chris. "I've been ingesting in for the last six months, increasing my dosage and building up somewhat of a tolerance to it." Chris' eyebrows shot up and he stared hard at Scott before muttering, "You're just full of surprises." He then looked up at Scott and nodded quickly before Scott took off back into the woods. He only made it a few paces before Emily grabbed his arm and whirled him around. "We're going to stay here for a bit and get to know these people. If we're going to be staying in close quarters then they should be able to trust us somewhat."

Scott nodded before looking quizzically at her and Aaron. "What do you mean 'if we're staying here'? Who said anything about you two staying. Actually, never mind, I don't really care. Right now I need a drink and you can tell me why the hell the two of you are here when you get back." With that he turned on his heel, away from his pack mates irritated faces and took of running away from the Hale house as fast as he could.

**Allison**

Scott's abrupt departure and lack of a goodbye left the rest of them standing around awkwardly, unsure of what to say. She looked around and saw similar looks of hurt that must have adorned her face also. The fact that Scott didn't even spare her a glance during his rendezvous hurt her more than she was ever willing to admit. She looked at her father who looked back at her with weary eyes, obviously thinking the same thing that she was. _If he did kill this Rookwood then he had killed a human and that was against the code. Did that mean that they had to kill Scott? What would Derek and his pack do if they did decide to go after him? Did they also agree that he was to volatile and unpredictable and that he should be put down? Finally, could she kill Scott? Could she kill her first love?_

These questions rattled around in her head and she was so preoccupied by her thoughts that she didn't even notice Brian grasp her hand and pull her towards the Hale pack who were talking with Stiles, Lydia and Deaton. They turned when they saw the two wolves return from the forest and approach the pack. Their hands were held up in front of them and they approached slowly, indicating the held no threat. "If we're going to be living in close quarters then I figured that we should try to get to know all of you," the one called Emily said. Allison couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy when she remembered her hand on Scott's shoulder and the way she leaned towards him to whisper into her ear, even if the gesture was more sibling-like than romantic. "I'm Emily and this is my brother Aaron," she heard the woman say.

She couldn't have been more than twenty and Allison had to admit that the woman was beautiful. She had blonde, curly hair and long, inviting eyelashes along with perfect, pale skin and red pouty lips that drove men crazy. She flashed a dazzling smile in their direction showing off her array of sparkling white teeth. Her tank top and jacket showed off her chest while her black jeans hugged her hips and showed off her curves and long legs. Her brother was also handsome, but not like his sister. He had a plain face with short black hair and laugh lines were visible on his face and his eyes crinkled when he smiled. Derek approached to talk to them which left the rest of them to talk in hushed voices about Scott.

"It's like he's a completely different person," Isaac half-whispered while the others nodded their heads. "Did you see the way he took down Derek in like less than a minute," Stiles added, eyes twitching between the members of the group. "He was practically toying with him and he didn't even bother to shift to do it." The others nodded while Allison thought about the scars that littered his torso and back. She wondered how many fights he had been in in the last sixteen months and she then found herself absent-mindedly wondering what it would be like to run her fingers over the red lines along his toned stomach.

She heard her name being called but paid the voice no heed as she immersed herself in her thoughts of Scott and his new demeanour. She was broken from her thoughts by Brian lightly shaking her on the shoulder and the rest of the group looking at her oddly. "S-sorry, what was that?" she asked to no-one in particular. "I said," Stiles said with an exasperated sigh. "Do you know anything about these Rookwood's and how bad they really are?" She shook her head and looked around for her father and Deaton who were talking to Derek and the two other wolves. "They must be bad though if they caused my father to react the way that he did." Stiles nodded his head and the others, especially Boyd, Isaac and Erica looked uncertain. Chris Argent shook hands with the other wolves before nodding to Deaton and Derek and turned towards her and Brian and gestured for them to follow. Allison turned to her friends and said, "Look, I got to go but I'll see you all next Monday," she said with an apologetic voice. Stiles groaned and Isaac rolled his eyes and muttered something about 'hating school.' She smiled before waving at them and leaving the Hale house, hand in hand with Brian and following her father.

**Scott**

Scott literally burst into his hotel room, relieved to be free from the judging and astonished looks that his friends shot towards him during their meeting. _What did you expect? _He asked himself harshly. _Look at yourself. Their memories of you before you left were of the kind-hearted, caring boy that just wanted to keep everyone safe and save everyone. Now I'm a waste-of-space drunk with a death penalty on my head and trouble follows me like the plague. _He tried so hard to bury all the emotions that he knew would assault him during the little catch-up.

He was relieved to finally see his old friends, especially Stiles, although he didn't let it show whatsoever. Seeing Allison stirred up a whole load of mixed emotions, not helped by her close proximity with the young hunter who he didn't recognise. He couldn't help but feel a tiny pang of jealousy, another thing he didn't want to admit, even to himself. Most of all he was relieved to see Stiles and his sarcastic, witty humour. He didn't realise how much he had missed his friend before now. But now, after it was all over he felt almost nothing. Yes it was nice to see them all but he knew that it was only a matter of time before he would have to leave. His presence in beacon Hills put everyone in danger. For that reason he had to keep his detached, non-caring attitude so that he would have no second thoughts when the time came to leave again.

_Derek deserves to see Cora again but it's too much of a risk to stay here, _he told himself firmly. Derek would be furious, of course, especially after their little tussle. Their fight was inevitable. Coming into a new territory and defying an alpha is bound to get you in a fight but he also meant for it to happen. He needed to show them that he was dangerous and there was nothing they could do to stop him from leaving.

After about an hour of sitting in his room, thinking, Emily and Aaron returned and barged straight into his room. Scott rolled his eyes but said nothing. "A nice bunch," Aaron noted dryly. "Don't like the look of that Argent and that Stiles kid seems a little too eager about meeting new werewolves," he added with a frown. Scott smirked slightly. "Derek is ok too. Not the greatest of alpha's judging by the way you took him down so easily. Even I could take him down without breaking a sweat," Aaron continued on, flexing the considerable muscles in his large physique. "That'll have to change if they're going to survive what's to come."

"Nothing is about to _come_," Scott said angrily, glaring at Aaron. "I don't know what the two of you are doing here or what you hope to accomplish. You told me on the phone that you were in California," Scott said through gritted teeth, glaring at Emily. "I'm not going to stay here and use them to help me. They're not ready for this. They. Will. Die." Scott snarled the last bit, trying to hit home his point.

"Yes, we are staying here," Emily stated stubbornly. "Derek has a right to at least _try_ and find his sister." "If it really is his sister," Scott added. "I mean what are the chances that I would actually meet her. It might not be her. And if it's not and we end up staying and someone dies then that will all be on me." Emily looked at him seriously for a few seconds before staying in a voice that held no room for objection. "We're staying. Alec sent us to look after you and Sarah will be here soon as well. She's been dying to see you," Emily said, knowing Scott would stay now that Sarah was coming. She knew he had a soft spot for her. "The rest will stay in California for the time being. If we need them then they'll be here within days. You've been running for months, Scott. Your clothes are literally hanging off you and you have bags under your eyes like you haven't had a proper night's sleep in ages. To be honest, you look terrible."

"Gee, thanks for that," he said before sinking onto his bed and closing his eyes. "Where's Eric anyway. Why aren't you with him instead of me? He is your mate after all." A pained look crossed Emily's face. "Alec needed Eric with him and you needed us so we split for the time being. They'll be here when things go down South so it's only temporary. I'll survive." Scott nodded, noticing that Emily did have a downcast look to her, only one another werewolf would notice. Scott could tell it was affecting her to be separated from Eric.

"You can stay here for the time being or get your own room. I don't care, to be honest. But when Sarah gets here then we'll need somewhere to stay in town, like an apartment or something." Emily nodded in agreement. "Yeah, especially since it will take you way too long to get to school while you're staying here."

Scott shot up in the bed. "School?" he asked incredulously, looking at Emily like she had just grown an extra head. Aaron was looking at Scott with amusement. "You don't seriously think you can make me go to school," he scoffed. "Yes we can," Aaron said, his smile sliding off his face as he looked at Scott. "You may be an alpha but you're not the alpha of our pack. That title still rests with Alec. We're older than you and have been in the pack longer so while we're here you listen to us. Alec told us to look after you and that's what we're doing. We're not going to let you just sit around, drinking all day and waiting to die. You're going to school."

Scott glared at Aaron for a minute before huffing and falling backwards onto the bed, his head in his hands.

**If you enjoyed this then leave a review. If you didn't...well review anyway and tell me why! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Scott**

The next week was uneventful, just how Scott liked it. He was still worn out from the meeting with is old friends and he avoided the town as much as possible in case he met with one of them. The only thing worth noting was the arrival of Sarah, her bubbly character lightening the mood around the motel. The minute she saw Scott she ran up to him before throwing her arms around him and hugging him fiercely. "Oh Scott, it's been months. How are you? Oh you look awful. We missed you so much," she gushed within a matter of seconds and Scott smiled and hugger her back despite himself.

He doubted that the rest of the pack missed him as much as she did. If he was being brutally honest with himself he had brought nothing on the pack except trouble. He had always gotten on well with Sarah though and she kinda reminded him a little of Stiles and Cora all mixed into one person. He saw her as the sister he never had and was truly glad to see her.

But in the back of his mind he knew that her being here would only add to the list of people that could potentially die because of him. He held his tongue, though, and listened as she animatedly recounted to Scott all of the pack's adventures during his 'time away', as she referred to it. He sat and listened as she detailed a fight with a vampire clan and a group of hunters they met who actually worked under a code like the Argents. Scott then told her about the Argents and how Chris actually worked with him and his old pack to bring down the Kanima. Sarah sat dumbstruck, not believing about hunters like that.

She also asked him numerous questions about Beacon Hills High School and what it was like, revelling in the fact that they would be going to school together, her being the year below him, however. Her exuberance and happy attitude only making him dread his return to school even more.

All too soon it was Monday morning and Scott tumbled from his bed, smacking his alarm clock and quietening it on the way down. He reluctantly rose from the floor and stumbled into the shower of the new apartment he now shared with Emily, Aaron and Sarah. When he came out of the shower he was sickened to learn that Sarah had been up since half five, getting ready for school, not even able to sleep with excitement. Her attitude worsened his mood which was already bad enough, considering he hadn't had a drink in like four days. All of this left Scott in a foul mood as he set off out the door at 7:40 am with Sarah alongside him.

They arrived outside Beacon High ten minutes later and Scott looked the building up and down with weary eyes, dreading the day to come. The car park was full of students milling around, hugging their friends and chatting animatedly about their summer. It made Scott sick. He sighed and squared his shoulders before walking up to the school and walking through the doors, ignoring the many looks that were sent his way.

Sarah, on the other hand, seemed to be in her element, smiling and waving at random students as she followed Scott to the main office. Scott rolled his eyes as the boys shamelessly stared at Sarah as she strutted through the corridor in her high heels, red skinny jeans, white tank-top and black leather jacket. Scott approached the front office and collected their timetables and handed Sarah hers before gesturing her to follow him. All of the legality and paperwork for the two of them to start school had been sorted out by Emily and Aaron earlier on in the week.

Scott walked Sarah to her first class, grimly thinking about all the idiotic boys he would have to keep from drooling at her, hugged her outside the classroom and carried on his way to his first class, English with Ms Blake. He knocked on the door and waited and she opened the door and looked at Scott with wide eyes before closing the door and walking out into the corridor. "Scott," she said, looking curiously at him. "I thought you left Beacon Hills last year."

"I did," he said simply. "But now I'm back." She nodded before turning back and opening the door to her classroom and ushering Scott in. "I'd introduce you but I guess you already know everyone here." Scott nodded and looked around the room, noticing Stiles, Isaac, Allison, Lydia and well practically the whole class looking at him with shock. He quickly ducked into an empty seat at the front of the class, eager to be out of the spotlight.

The day continued on in the same fashion with the teachers surprised to see him but he realised that the students weren't. _News travels quickly,_ he thought, thankful that he wasn't stared at as much anymore. He still heard most of the students in his classes whispering about him, however, wondering why he was back and how different he looked. He was especially surprised by the stares and attention he was getting from the girls in every class. _I thought I looked a mess, _he thought with a shrug before zoning out from whatever Mr Harris was saying to the class, much like he had done all day.

He barely spoke a word to Stiles or the rest of them throughout the day, only an awkward "Hi" here and there. When the lunch bell finally rang Scott was well and truly ready to run as fast as he could to a nearby bar and drown himself in alcohol. But he didn't. He walked towards the cafeteria and was thankful to see the familiar face of Sarah, looking for a place to sit among all the students. He saw Stiles and the usual group sitting at a table in the middle of the cafeteria and when they locked gazes, Stiles ushered him over with a wave of a hand.

"Come on," said Scott, placing his hand on Sarah's back and guiding her over to the table. He smiled at the futile attempts of the boys who eagerly made room at their tables and looked hopefully at Sarah. After a couple of seconds he arrived at his table and looked around at everyone awkwardly, only Stiles meeting his gaze. "Sit," he said to Sarah before walking off and getting some food, just a sandwich and a bottle of water. When he arrived at the table Sarah was chatting and introducing herself to everyone. Scott smiled a little and thought, _she could start a conversation with a wall. _Scott took a seat beside Stiles and eventually the conversation began to flow. "Soooo, Scott, how ya been?" asked Stiles. The table went quiet. Scott looked at his friend's goofy grin and said, "Good…you?" He gestured to Stiles and the rest of the table relaxed and the awkwardness began to ebb away replaced by conversation.

Scott didn't really listen or participate but just stared at his food as Sarah told them all about the pack and what it's like in the cities. Scott looked up from his food and noticed that new hunter kid with Allison staring…..well more like glaring at him from the other end of the table. "Umm….have you got a problem?" Scott asked, staring pointedly at him. The talk slowly ebbed away from the table and silence enveloped the group once more.

"Yeah," he replied, his voice bitter. "You're the problem." Everyone looked nervously between the two boys, the hunter looking angry and Scott staring back at him with disinterest. "Huh. You have a problem with me and I don't even know your name. That's interesting," Scott replied in a voice that implied he had never been so bored in his life. Isaac chuckled slightly and covered it up with a cough. "His name is Brian," Allison said quickly, trying to diffuse the tension that had suddenly crept up on them.

"What are you?" Scott asked. "Are you like Chris' pet or protégé or something?" "Neither. I'm Allison's boyfriend," he said in a smug tone. "Oh, well congratulations," Scott replied matter-of-factly. "And you have a problem with me because Allison and I used to date, right?" Brian nodded. "Wrong answer," Scott said, smirking at the boy. "You've had it in for me ever since you met me. You don't just have a problem with me. You want to kill me. Am I right, Brian?" He didn't answer. Everyone else at the table was deathly quiet. "Did you think I couldn't sense it from you that day at the Hale house? You were just _itching_ to pull that trigger. Waiting for me to move or do something so you could unload that clip in me." Scott spoke in a clam voice barely above a whisper. Everyone at the table listened with rapt attention.

"You broke the code. You killed a human. You should be six feet under if it weren't for the fact that everyone seems to feel sorry for you because you're mom died," he spat in response. There was a small intake of breath from everyone at the table. Scott could feel the anger bubbling in the pit of his stomach and radiating into his veins and slowly around his body. He tried to keep his face calm and betray no emotion but he knew the wolves at the table could sense his anger.

"Well then, Brain. What are you waiting for? Give it your best shot. You'll never get another chance than this. I'm in the middle of the cafeteria. It's not like I can shift or anything." Scott pushed his tray away and rose from his seat glaring at Brian who did likewise. The rest of the cafeteria went quiet, eyes trained on the pair. Scott knew Brian wouldn't actually fight him. Maybe threaten him a little bit but the man focus for Scott was not letting the beast within take over and rip this little shit to shreds. Still he had to do something, show this kid who's the one with the power.

Allison pulled on Brian's sleeve, desperately trying to get him to sit down. "Brian, what the hell are you doing? The whole cafeteria is watching you two. Sit down!" she whispered urgently. "If I were you I'd listen to her, Brian," Scott said, walking around the table and stopping to face Brian. "Wouldn't want you to get hurt in front of your girlfriend, hell in front of the whole school almost," Scott said, looking around the cafeteria, all eyes trained on the pair. Brian pushed Scott away from him lightly, just enough to make Scott take a couple of steps back.

"Or maybe you might surprise everyone, _rise _to the occasion and make a fool out of me in front of everyone. But…..I highly doubt that," Scott added. Scott heard Brian's heartbeat quicken slightly and he knew he was getting under the hunter's skin. _He truly is a moron if he attacks me_, Scott said in his head. Scott walked up to the young hunter once more, inches from his face. "Do it. Be a man. Take the first shot," Scott said to him. "Or stand there like an idiot, trying to look hard but not actually accomplishing it."

Brian finally broke and swung for Scott. Scott dodged the punch easily and before Brian had and time to react Scott grabbed the back of his head, turned him around and slammed his forehead into the table, leaving a sizable dent. He then turned Brian around and grasped him around the throat with one hand and lifted him easily into the air. "Stop it, Scott," Allison screamed at him. "He can't breathe. You're choking him." "No, I'm teaching him a lesson in when to pick a fight and when not to," he growled in response before dropping Brian on the ground where he lay in a heap, coughing and massaging his throat. Allison glared angrily at Scott before crouching down at his side and rubbing his back.

"That was unnecessary," Sarah said with a frown. "No-one talks about my mom. Especially little shits like him who don't know their place. He should be thankful I didn't tear his head off," Scott said just loud enough for everyone at their table to hear before he grabbed his bag and stormed out of the cafeteria, hundreds of pairs of eyes trained on his back as he left.

Scott stared at the clock as it slowly approached 3, wishing the day would just end already. Since the little fiasco in the cafeteria everyone seemed to be talking about him and people stared everywhere he went. Looking back on it he probably could have just walked away but the guy was getting on his nerves and he wasn't in the best of moods to begin with. He knew Emily and Aaron wouldn't be happy with him drawing attention to himself but people were talking about him anyway.

So when the bell finally went it came as a huge relief and he raced out of the classroom and out the front door into the cool, autumn breeze. He waited outside for Sarah who came out of the front doors talking and laughing with Stiles. Scott raised his eyebrows as the pair came closer. "Stiles was just telling me how you were turned and about your first full moon," she explained with a smile on her face. Stiles looked at Scott nervously as if he expected Scott to choke him too. Scott felt a pang of guilt before smiling and saying, "You can talk about it more back at the apartment if you want," Scott said to Stiles. The relief on his face was palpable and his face broke out into a wide grin. "Sure, hop in the jeep and I'll drive you over," he said before dashing into his blue jeep and turning on the engine.

Scott gestured to Sarah to hop in the back as he jumped into the front, savouring the smell of the familiar jeep. "I missed this jeep," Scott said absent-mindedly, letting his tough outer façade down while around Sarah and his friend. "Obviously, dude," Stiles said as if it was obvious that he would miss his jeep. "This is my baby," he said, fondly patting the dashboard. "You can't not miss it." Sarah chuckled and Scott smiled. If anyone knew how to get Scott to smile it was Stiles

**A/N: Not really sure about the education system in America and if Scott and the others are too old to be in school but I thought it would make the story more interesting. Anyway, thanks to those who have reviewed and are following the story and all that. If you haven't reviewed then feel free and tell me what you think! **


	5. Chapter 5

**Scott**

"Nice apartment man," said Stiles as he stood in the centre of the living room with his hands on his hips and looked around. "Yeah, it's ok. I'll be back in a second. Sarah can keep you company in the time being," Scott said while winking at Sarah. She blushed slightly but said nothing and within seconds he heard them strike up a conversation. Scott rummaged through his drawers until he found the bottle of wolfsbane he bought of Chris. He unscrewed the cap off the bottle and drew a small amount of the liquid into a fresh syringe. Without hesitating he jabbed the needle into a vein in his forearm and injected the wolfsbane.

Scott's back arched and he let out an involuntary scream. He distantly heard footsteps and his door opening and Sarah telling Stiles he would be fine in a few minutes. After a few seconds of searing agony Scott managed to weakly sit up in the bed, Sarah and Stiles each side of him. He ignored them and reached for the third drawer in his locker and pulled out a bottle of jack buried within the pile of clothes. He screwed open the cap and gulped down the liquid. It pleasantly burned his throat on the way down and after a few seconds he stopped shaking and some of his colour started to return. Scott looked at the bottle, clearly tempted to have some more but he surprised them by closing the bottle and putting it away. _Maybe there's some of the old Scott buried deep within there after all. _

"Do you have to go through that every time you inject yourself?" Stiles asked me. Scott nodded. "It's worth it though," he said. "Wolfsbane is their main weapon against us. I won't ever be immune to it but the tolerance that I have now could be the difference between life and death." Scott paused and looked Stiles in the eyes. "I may act indifferent about this whole 'death penalty' over my head but the reality is that I'm scared Stiles. I don't want to die but I don't see any other possible outcome from this. I can't think of a situation where I survive and no-one dies, a situation where you or Sarah or Cora don't die," Scott said, close to tears. Stiles and Sarah were surprised by the emotion in Scott's voice.

"No-one should die for me. I don't deserve to have anyone sacrifice their life for me. If one of you is killed then it will all be on me. Don't you see that? Don't you see that's why I'm so distant? I'm a magnet for trouble. I'm cursed." A solitary tear escaped and ran down Scott's cheek. Scott wiped it away hastily with the palm of his hand. He felt Sarah place a hand on his shoulder and some of the tension in him disappeared.

Stiles smiled and said, "During your first full moon, right before the party I told you that you were cursed, remember?" Scott nodded. "See! I knew even then you were destined to become a troubled alcoholic teen," Stiles joked while playfully bumping his shoulder against Scott. Scott laughed shakily and suddenly something that he had noticed earlier on that day sprung to his mind. "Stiles, where's Jackson. I didn't see him in school." "He left," Stiles replied. "Went to London." Scott raised his eyebrows and Stiles shrugged before leaving the room and heading into the kitchen, Scott and Sarah in his wake.

They laughed and talked for a couple of hours, Scott revelling in the brief time when he felt somewhat like his old self. He knew it wouldn't last for long however and soon he would have to be the cold and distant Scott that people now associated with him. _At least Stiles understands why, _Scott thought. _I won't tell the others though. If they are going to survive what's to come then I don't need their pity weighing me down. Enjoy this time while it lasts, _he told himself grimly. Just on cue Emily burst through the door with Aaron right behind her, their windswept looks and expressions telling Scott all he needed to know. "What is it?" Sarah asked worriedly. Aaron opened his mouth to speak but Scott cut in before her. "They're here."

**Stiles**

Stiles jumped to his feet instantly, the gears in his head working overtime trying to piece together what was going on. "Do you mean the sadistic hunters or the enraged werewolves, or maybe both? How fun would that be, huh? A bloody massacre, that's how much fun!" he half shouted, causing the four wolves to look at him as he paced back and forth. "Oh, no, no, no, no! This is too soon. I thought we'd have weeks to prepare," he said to himself more than anyone else.

"STILES, STOP!" Scott shouted, silencing the hyperactive teen. Stiles looked at Scott with his mouth half open before huffing and closing it, running his hand through his hair and banging his hand off his thigh. "Is he always that twitchy?" Sarah asked with a grin. Scott ignored the question and focused on the matter at hand. "Tell me what happened. Tell me everything." Emily looked at Aaron and nodded and he recounted the story. Stiles turned his attention to the wolves once Aaron started and listened closely. "We were running around the edge of Beacon Hills while you were at school. When we met your old pack we didn't really care about getting to know them. Our main objective was to identify and separate their scents so we could detect new ones entering the area."

"About noon we caught a scent being blown towards us from a distance. It was feint but we knew it was new and relatively close. It's lucky the wind was blowing in our direction or we wouldn't have smelt them until it was almost too late. At least now we have time to prepare."

"How many were there?" Scott asked and Stiles suddenly realised he didn't want to hear the answer. "At least seven, maybe eight at the most," Emily replied. "They don't know about us _yet_," she said, heavy emphasis on the yet. "It took us half the afternoon to find them and we've been running back here ever since. Once they're within a couple of miles or so they'll instantly know you're here." Stiles was in a daze. He actually thought after the Kanima this part of his life was over and for a year and a bit it was. Yet here he was once again, right in the middle of a freaking werewolf clan battle. "How much time do we have?" Scott asked, his voice surprisingly calm, too calm for Stiles' liking.

"Two days at the most," replied Aaron. Scott nodded and sat down on the sofa, staring blankly at the black television screen. The rest of them stared at Scott, waiting for him to yell or curse or panic or run or at least do _something._ But all he did was continue to stare at the television. "Um….Scott, what are you doing," Stiles asked pointedly. "Thinking," came the reply. _Thinking, _Stiles said to himself. "Well do you want to do your thinking while we're doing something productive?" Stiles asked.

"Like what?" Scott asked him, turning to look at the agitated teen. "Like what…I don't know, Scott. ANYTHING other than staring at television. We should tell Derek, like right now. You," Stiles said, pointing at Emily, "You get Derek while I call Allison and Scott can…just sit there. Great" Stiles said, looking at Scott who was still looking at the blank television screen. "Quickly, come on!"

Emily raised her eyebrows at Stiles who was mashing away at the screen of his phone, urgently calling Allison. Within seconds Allison picked up and he hurriedly explained the situation to her, giving her directions to the apartment before hanging up and looking expectantly at the others. Emily stood looking at Stiles with her hands on her hips and Aaron crossed his arms. Scott and Sarah looked at him with amused expressions. "Oh my god, do I have to do everything myself," he muttered before calling Derek and telling him what was happening. Scott texted Deaton, giving him directions to the apartment and they quietly waited for the others to arrive.

**Scott**

He tried to stay as calm as possible but that was mainly for everyone else's benefit rather than his own, even when the others finally came barging through the door, shouting and asking questions and looking around frantically. The last thing the others needed to see now was his panicking or freaking out when in actual reality he was freaking out on the inside. Instead he sat calmly and listened as Erica and Boyd asked Derek what to do, Isaac wanted to hide, Chris wanted to wait and let them attack first. Scott listened to them ramble quietly for twenty minutes before Brian finally broke his resolve.

"I say we should attack them now while they least expect it," he stated, looking around to see of anyone agreed with him. "Were you born with half the amount of regular brain cells?" Scott asked in a mocking voice, leering at Brian. "Attack them while they least expect it? That's your best plan after twenty minutes of thinking. Did you stop to think about the fact that they'll smell us long before we reach them? Or how about the fact that we don't actually know how many of them there are? Or maybe you forgot that there's seven. Maybe _eight _of them out there?" The room was silent for the first time since the group arrived as Scott bombarded the young hunter with questions, each one outlining how flawed his plan was.

"I see eight wolves here," he said in response after a pause, glaring red-faced at Scott. Scott could see the feint track of his hand around his neck and he felt a brief moment of satisfaction. "Yeah," Scott said. "Four of those wolves have never been in a fight like this before. If we just go running in it will be a bloodbath. You're arrows," Scott said, briefly glancing at Allison who stared at him intensely, "And your bullets will be of no use once the fighting starts. The risk of hitting one of us will be too great."

"I'll take my chances," Brian mumbled, looking down at the floor. Scott growled and let his eyes turn blood red for a moment before they reverted to their normal colour. "We can hold our own in a fight," Erica said after a moment of silence. Boyd nodded and added, "We've been training." Scott rolled his eyes before looking at Aaron and Emily who did likewise. He was starting to sense their impatience as well.

"This isn't the same as _training_," Scott said slowly, trying to get his message through. "This pack knows how to fight. They've been defending their territory for years. The competition for territory in large cities is like nothing you've ever seen. All these wolves know is how to fight. You don't survive if can't defend yourself. Especially for larger packs. The smaller the pack, the easier it is to go unnoticed."

"What do you think we should do, then," asked Derek. "Nothing," Scott replied, sitting down once more. "We wait, let them make their first move." Chris nodded in agreement along with Aaron. Scott continued talking. "Our only advantage at this time is that they don't know what they're walking into. They'll smell Derek and his pack instantly but they won't know for sure how many are in it and how dangerous they are," Scott added, looking at Derek. "Also, they've been tracking me for six months and I've been alone this whole time. They won't expect Aaron and Emily to be with me. That's the only advantage we have. The element of surprise," Scott finished, looking at the group who all stared at him, impressed by his insight on how to approach the situation.

"What about me?" Sarah asked, looking at Scott with a hand on her hip. Scott raised one eyebrow as if to say "What about you?" "You never mentioned what I'd be doing while you're off getting ready to fight." Scott thought for a second. He knew there was no way she'd sit this one out. Who was he to tell her what to do? Yet he also knew she wasn't as experienced a fighter as him or Aaron or Emily. Scott looked in their direction for help.

"What do you want to do?" asked Emily. "Well I know I didn't beg Alec to let me come all this way and find Scott to end up sitting out the fight." Emily nodded, a resigned look on her face and Scott sighed. "Emily, you better call Alec and tell him what's happening. They can still make it in time and I'm sure the other pack will wait for the rest of their pack to join once they find out that we're here." Emily nodded and pulled her phone out of her pocket before leaving the room.

"What do you mean the pack is going to wait until the rest of them join before attacking?" Stiles asked, worry etched across his face. Scott shrugged. "There was sixteen in the pack before I killed the alpha. Without a leader I'd guess maybe two or three left. I'd say there's at least another five werewolves in the pack." Isaac went pale and for the first time in his life he actually thought he saw Derek scared. _This isn't going well, _Scott thought, looking around the room at other scared faces. _They're already terrified. _Just when he thought it could get no worse Emily came into the room with tears in her eyes. Scott stood immediately.

"What is it?" he asked, just about keeping the panic out of the voice. "Just got off the phone with Alec. They're in trouble with hunters, real bad trouble." Scott cursed, realising the implications. They were on their own. He turned and looked at Emily once more to seek confirmation but he instantly knew she was hiding something else. "What is it, Emily? What else did he say?" She looked at Scott before she burst out crying, tears streaming down her face. Scott leapt to her side along with Aaron and Sarah, trying to console her. "He's dead," she gasped between sobs. Scott's stomach clenched upon hearing the words. "Who?" he asked, knowing the answer. "Eric," she managed to say before breaking down all over again.

Scott stood and placed his head in his hands. His world seemed to tilt around him for a second and he leaned on the wall for support. "Who killed him," Scott asked after a couple of minutes, the only noise in the room coming from Emily who cried on the floor. She looked up at him through red, watery eyes, tears streaming down her face. "Marcus," she spat with venom. Scott's blood went cold. "Marcus Rookwood," she finished before burying her head in Aaron's shoulder as a fresh wave of anguish washed over her.

Scott felt his blood turn from ice to boiling point in a matter of seconds and the werewolves noticed the shift, backing up from Scott silently. All eyes were on him, he realised but he didn't care. "It's my fault," he muttered to himself but everyone could clearly hear him. "It's my fault," he said once more. "The whole pack is split because of me and now Eric is dead because of me," he said, his head in his hands once more. "I have to do something, go to California, I have help them" he decided, more to himself than anyone in the room. "I have to stop this."

"No," Derek said sharply. "You can't leave. Not now" "Why not," Scott suddenly exploded, unable to control his anger any longer. He doubled over and all of a sudden he felt the shift coming. He felt the anger well up inside him and he could feel his fangs elongating, his claws digging into the wall that he clung to for support. _Control it, _he told himself. _If you shift with so much pent up aggression you're putting everyone in danger. Control it, _he ordered himself and with a massive effort of focus and restraint he felt the beast subside and his features return to normal. It was only until he stood straight that he realised everyone had moved over to the other side of the room.

"This is the only logical thing to do, Derek," he said once his breathing had slowed to a normal rate. "I can't have any more blood on my hands, I just c-," Scott's voice broke before he could finish and he let himself slide down the wall before sitting on the ground and placing his head between his legs.

**Derek**

_He's broken, _Derek thought grimly, watching the young alpha collapse to the ground, a shadow of the person that he used to be. He looked around at the people gathered behind him, all looking at Scott with pity. _I have to say something_, he thought desperately, regretting the fact that he was never any good with words. _I can't just let him crumble like that. The last thing we need right now is an emotionally wrecked alpha AWOL in Beacon Hills. _

He was just about to say something when he watched with relief as the young girl, _Sarah, was it?_, rise from her spot beside Emily and walk over to Scott and sit down beside him, resting her hand on his shoulder. She didn't say anything but he could tell Scott didn't want to hear words right now, the physical contact with someone doing more good than words could ever do. "It's not your fault," he heard the girl whisper, pulling Scott into a one-armed hug. "There's nothing you could have done. All of us would have killed him to save her. It's not your fault they came after you." After a few moments she looked up and gestured to the door while looking at Derek.

Derek nodded and without a word he and his pack left, the others close behind him. Stiles stopped to pat Scott on the shoulder and Allison hovered, thought better of it and left with a sad look on her face. Derek was glad to be free of the apartment. _Too much grief and guilt in such a confined space, _he thought bitterly, remembering a time when that was all that filled him, all that kept him going. His grief had subsided somewhat over the years but the pain remained, a constant reminder of what he had lost over the years.

They walked in silence back to his loft and when they arrived Peter was there waiting for them with a smirk on his face. "What did I miss," he asked cheerfully, ignoring their downcast moods, angering Derek further with his attitude. "The pack after Scott is here. They called for back-up and their alpha said one of them was dead. The woman called Emily cried because someone called Eric died. Must be her mate or something…." Isaac trailed off with a thoughtful look on his face. "Oh and Scott had a full blown emotional break-down" Isaac added in a matter-of-fact tone, telling Peter the bare minimum, none of them really wanting to discuss what the just witnessed in any great detail.

"Ooh, how exciting," Peter said, ignoring the glares sent his way. "So what do we do now?" he asked. "Now we sleep," Derek said. Peter pouted, clearly unimpressed by such a boring activity. "If Scott manages to pull himself together in the next couple of days we fight. But right now we get some sleep," he said before leaving the betas to their thoughts and retreating to his room. _Please let no-one die,_ was his last thought before collapsing onto his bed, hoping to catch a few hours' sleep.

**A/N: lovelyloupus: yeah I've written ahead a bit and I already had a moment like that between Scott and Stiles. Great minds think alike :) It seems all doom and gloom now but Scott isn't the emotionless shell everyone thinks or else it would be way too depressing.**

**Anyway, thanks to those who have reviewed and follow the story. If you liked this chapter then review and tell me why!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Scott**

School the next day was a nightmare for Scott. Throughout the whole day he received worried glances from Stiles, Isaac, Boyd, Erica, Allison and Lydia, waiting to see if he was going to lose it once more. He knew he shouldn't have lost it like he did. _They must think I'm weak now, an emotional wreck, _he said to himself grimly. As much as he tried to seem tough and non-caring on the outside, Scott knew it was only a façade. _And now so do they,_ he thought with a grimace.

_At least I didn't cry_, he thought. He hated it when people saw him cry. After a while Emily recovered and managed to stand, reassuring Scott that it wasn't his fault. "None of this is your fault," she said to him before disappearing into her room. He knew it was a lie, forced, only to make him feel less guilty but he saw right through it and it only made him feel worse.

He thanked Sarah for staying with him before rising from the floor and trudging up to his room felling terrible. It was at that moment he decided he had to be tougher. He had to disconnect himself from his guilt, stop blaming himself for things that were out of his control, like he blamed himself about Cora and about his mother. If he had just given in to Gerard then maybe she wouldn't have died. _Stop, _he ordered himself, shaking his head angrily. _You didn't place the explosives, Gerard did._

If he was going to stand a chance of surviving he needed to stop feeling so sorry for himself. _If only there was an off button, _the thought, desperately wishing he could turn off the guilt with the flick of a button. _First thing's first. Stop feeling guilty about Eric. Werewolves die from hunters all the time. Forget about Emily. She's hurting now but she would get over it and she knows she can't wallow in her own pity with the threat of attack around the corner. "_A threat you brought on everyone here," a voice said in the back of his head. He ignored it.

_Finally, I have to distance himself from my old friends as much as possible. I'll do everything I can in my power to protect them. I owe them that much. I brought this trouble on them and it's my responsibility to protect them now. But it will never be the same as it was before. Maybe with Stiles but not the others, _he realised grimly. Scott armoured himself with those three thoughts in his head, going to sleep with conviction and rising in the morning like last night had never taken place.

_If only they knew that, _he said to himself, their concerned looks starting to irritate him, like _a lot._ Just then there was a knock on the door and Scott looked up sharply, his thoughts interrupted as he focused solely on the scent outside the door. He looked around at the other three werewolves in the class who were in deep conversation, oblivious to what was standing outside the door. Just then Harris walked back in with a tall, dark haired boy, eighteen or so, muscled and well-built with a confident smirk on his mean face and a swagger about him as he entered behind Harris, glancing around the room before locking eyes with Scott. His smirk deepened.

"Class, this is Simon. Simon…..." Harris trailed off, looking at the teen. "Simon Taylor." "Ok, Simon," Harris said, glancing around the room. "Take a seat beside McCall." Simon smiled widely before strutting over to Scott's table and casually sitting in the stool beside Scott, not even looking at him. Scott looked back at the three betas who were all looking at him with expressions that asked "Is he one of them?" Scott nodded in confirmation before turning back to face the front of the class.

When class ended Scott calmly collected his stuff and exited when he heard the loud thud of footsteps behind him. "You're a hard man to find, Scott," came the voice from behind him. His voice was deep and confident and he seemed to have the ability to make even the simplest of statements seem like an insult. Scott stopped in his tracks and waited for Simon to catch up, which his long strides managed in seconds. "Kinda dropped the ball by staying here for this long though, didn't you Scott. Makes you wonder why you would stop in this shitty little town. So we decided to do a little background check on you and your….._history _with Beacon Hills," he said slowly, waiting for Scott to react. "You can find almost anything on the internet these days. Terrible about your mother. Such a shame." He shook his head dramatically.

_Calm down, Scott, _he told himself, feeling his claws elongate. He could not letting himself be drawn into a fight in the middle of the corridor in front of everyone. Suddenly Scott did a double take. _Why was everyone looking at them?_ He asked himself, only noticing then that almost everyone on the corridor had stopped to watch the pair. _I guess the incident in the cafeteria didn't help. Better avoid a fight or I'm going to end up getting a reputation as a loose cannon, _he said to himself. Simon stepped closer, highlighting his aerial advantage over Scott.

"We've chased you for months and I honestly am starting to wonder if it was worth it. Are you just going to stand there and do nothing? Why weren't you there to save her Scott, huh?" he asked, trying to goad Scott into making his first move. "Isn't that what you're doing? Standing there, doing nothing." Scott sneered. "Trying to look hard. Maybe impress a few girls on the first day?" Simon's grin turned into a grimace. "Actually, come to think of it. What you're doing now is kind of like what you did when I ripped your alpha's head off, isn't it," Scott whispered, stepping closer. _If there's going to be a fight then I'm going to make him make the first move. _

"What's wrong, Simon? Cat got your tongue? Or are you just as big a coward as you were then?" Scott asked in a snarl and Simon broke, lunging for Scott and punching him square in the jaw. Scott stumbled backwards and fell to the floor and a few people gasped. Scott smiled. _This is the one thing that I'm good at anymore, _he thought, watching Simon as he stood spit a glob of blood on the ground. Simon pressed forward and swung for Scott's temple but he dodged, kicking Simon in the back of his knee as he went past. Simon quickly regained balance and came at Scott once more. _He's fast, _Scott thought, ducking under a ferocious swing that would have broken his nose. _Faster than Derek. _

Simon lunged once more and Scott ducked and seeing Simon's guard falter he struck, quick as a snake with an uppercut to the chin. He followed it with a knee to the ribs before kicking Simon in the abdomen, sending him sprawling into the lockers. Simon cursed and rose quickly, murder in his eyes but this time he didn't attack Scott, instead opting to be more cautious. Scott moved forward, opting to end the fight quickly, knowing soon that the two of them would soon be sitting in the principal's office with him wondering how two students who didn't even know each other managed to get into a fight after only one class together.

Scott attacked, punching Simon in the stomach. Simon doubled over and as Scott went to finish him Simon lunged and tackled Scott to the ground, trapping him with his legs. Simon started to throw punches wildly at Scott's head and Scott reacted by throwing his hands up to protect himself. He saw Isaac try to move forward out of the corner of his eye but Boyd threw up his hand to stop him. Simon faltered for a second realising he wasn't landing any clean hits, mainly hitting his forearms. That second hesitation was all that Scott needed before he drove his fist into Simon's ribcage and a sickening crack was heard throughout the corridor.

Simon gasped and Scott quickly threw him off and stood. Simon stood shakily but Scott knew that the fight was over. Within seconds Scott hit him three times, right, left, right. Two in the face and one in his broken ribs. Simon groaned and fell to his knees, blood dripping out his mouth. Scott kneed him in the face, forcing him to topple over onto his back. Scott knelt beside him and grabbed his throat, applying a little pressure. "Either you're really stupid to pick a fight with an alpha," Scott let his eyes flash red for a second for added effect while looking at the beaten werewolf. "Or you were sent to pick a fight with me or something like that, see what I'm made of I guess. So, which is it?" he asked. "Because I'm honestly not sure."

Simon glared at him then winced as a wave of pain passed over him. "My alpha sent me. He ordered me to come and pick a fight with you." Scott felt a little guilty for a split second. _He didn't have a choice yet I beat him anyway. But there's no way I could have known that, _Scott reasoned with himself. "Whatever," Scott shrugged. "You're probably healing now but pretty much everyone heard your ribs crack so you better play hurt for a while."

Just then Ms Blake and the principal came running around the corner shouting "Stop." Scott removed his hand from his throat and tapped him twice on the cheek and stood, all eyes on him. "McCall, my office, now," the principal roared, pointing in the direction of his office. "The rest of you, what are you looking at. Back to class," he shouted and the students practically ran to class in fear of getting detention. "Better get an ambulance for this one," he added in a low voice to Ms Blake, frowning and shaking his head, looking at Simon for a moment before turning and following Scott into his office.

Turns out that Ms Blake saw the whole thing, well up until Scott broke Simon's ribs anyway. Apparently she came looking for her class, the whole class gawking at the fight taking place between the two werewolves. Turns out it was lucky she did see the whole thing as she was able to confirm that Simon had thrown the first punch. Apparently that was the only thing that was keeping him from being expelled, although a week's suspension was serious enough. Not that Scott cared. He actually kinda secretly hoped they would expel him but he knew that Emily and Aaron would be pissed at him. Then again she was still in shock from the death of her mate and she might not have even cared about his expulsion.

Either way Scott was glad he was sent home from school, knowing full well that he was soon to be the talking point of everyone in the damn building. _Oh well, _he thought just as he opened the door to the apartment. Aaron looked up at Scott with a confused look on his face and Emily was nowhere to be seen. He could hear heartbeat in her room and the quiet, muffled sound of her breathing. "What did you do?" asked Aaron, looking away from the television.

"The pack," Scott said, sitting down beside him with a huff. "One of them came to school. He picked a fight with me. A test, I guess. It was a bit too easy to goad him into hitting me first." Aaron nodded, clearly looking troubled. _He must be thinking there was more to Simon being in school than just to fight me, _Scott said to himself, something he had been thinking about on the way home. "Oh, and I'm suspended for a week." Aaron didn't look surprised or angry as Scott expected. On the contrary he seemed….._relieved?_

"It's probably for the best," he said, standing and switching off the television before turning to face Scott. "What do you mean?" asked Scott. Aaron gestured to the window and Scott looked at it for the first time since entering and his stomach lurched. The imprint of a hand had been marked on the window with blood. Scott rose from the chair and walked over to the window, placing his own hand against the imprint marked on the other side. The last time he had seen a symbol like that was in California and he killed the alpha that put it there. "They're coming," he said in a worried voice.

Aaron nodded. "I thought we'd have more time but we all knew this was coming. All we can do now is brace ourselves." Scott looked over at the larger wolf as a million thoughts flashed through his mind. Images of his fiends dying, images of _him_ dying, each image more gruesome than the last. "How much time do we have?" Scott asked.

Aaron shrugged and walked back to the couch. "A day, two days, a week," he replied, sitting once more on the black leather. "Maybe they'll attack tonight but I doubt it. Like you said last night they'll want to know what they're walking into before they do anything." Something clicked within Scott. "Simon, the boy who attacked me will have gotten a look at Isaac, Boyd an Erica today as well." Scott said. "They're slowly figuring out how many werewolves are here. I'm sure he would have sensed Sarah as well," Scott continued on.

"There goes the element of surprise to some extent," grumbled Aaron. "It's only a matter of time before they find Emily and I. Look, the only thing we know for certain is that they're coming. We don't know how they'll attack or when but it will be soon. It doesn't matter how much they know right now. They won't attack us head on. It's way too risky."

Scott shook his head. "We're not ready for this, Aaron. None of us are but especially Derek and his pack. The most they've faced is an adolescent teen on a revenge mission with a Kanima that wasn't even trying to kill us and we still struggled. Now we have eight bloodthirsty wolves on at the edge of town willing to kill anything that gets in the way of getting to me." Scott ran his hand through his hair and began to pace. "What do we do?" Scott asked the larger wolf, desperately seeking some sort of reassurance, some sort of guidance.

"We fight," came the reply from the corridor. Scott looked around to see Emily standing at the entrance to the sitting room. She looked a mess, if Scott was being brutally honest. Her hair was tangled, make-up smeared over her face and her eyes red and puffy from crying. Yet there was a steely look to her, a look of grim determination that told Scott she knew exactly what had to be done and was ready to do it. "We fight and we kill them," she said, looking first at Scott and then at her brother. "We kill them all."

* * *

Scott prepared himself emotionally for what was about to come. Once again circumstances conspired to force them to gather everyone together and talk about what to do. It was happening much too frequently for Scott's liking, especially seeing that he was trying to distance himself from everyone. Derek and his pack arrived first, along with Sarah who was just arriving home from school. She held her hand in front of Scott, waiting for the high-five, and said "Heard you gave quite the beat down to that werewolf today." Scott looked at her hand pointedly and she let it fall to her side with a sigh and moved to stand by Emily, draping her arm around her waist. Derek surprised them by sympathising with Emily, a gesture which she seemed to take well enough and lighten her mood ever so slightly.

Then came the Argents, looking awkward and slightly agitated as ever from being in such close proximity to a large group of werewolves. Scott bared his teeth a little upon seeing Brian who didn't even spare Scott a look, trailing behind Allison like a lost puppy. Stiles and Lydia were the last to arrive. Stiles waved to Scott who nodded his head curtly before averting his gaze. It was so hard to act unfriendly towards Stiles but Scott knew it was necessary. When everyone was settled Aaron explained the situation to them, pointing towards the window, showing them the bloody handprint. Derek did exactly what Scott did and walked over to the window and placed his hand over the mark.

There was silence for a minute and Scott was just waiting for all hell to break loose, knowing it was only a matter of mere seconds. Just on cue Chris asked "How long?" at the same time Stiles said "I thought you guys said we had a day, maybe two!" This proved to be the spark to the ignition as everyone started asking questions like "What do we do? Can we beat them? Today? Tonight? Now?" Scott couldn't take it anymore. He stood and with his full alpha voice he roared "STOP." Everyone went silent and looked at him. "One question at a time and then we might get somewhere," he said before sitting back down on the couch.

He heard Peter laugh lightly but said nothing and just stared at the wall avoiding eye contact. Aaron started speaking again, telling them all they knew, or more importantly, what they didn't know. He told them to calm down and reassured them that the pack wasn't just going to barge into town and fight them all one-to-one in the middle of Beacon Hills.

After what seemed like forever there was quiet once more and everyone looked around. They were worried but clearly not as worried as they were before. He silently thanked god that Aaron was here. He had a way with words, unlike Scott, and he was patient, again unlike Scott. If Aaron wasn't here then Scott knew the responsibility to talk would land at his feet and the thought of reassuring and calming them terrified him more than the fighting.

After a few minutes conversation began to break out among the congregation as they began to discuss various tactics, traps and possible attacks. Scott had no desire to join them. He always found that discussing this and that, speculating and asking an endless list of 'what if' questions only ever succeeded in making him dread a fight even more. Suddenly he felt a tentative tap on his shoulder and he instantly knew who it was.

Hell, who was he kidding, he would recognise that scent and know that heartbeat anywhere in the world. Without looking up he moved over a bit, allowing Allison space to sit down beside him, which she did. He finally averted his gaze from the wall and looked at the extremely nervous young woman beside him. _God, she's gotten even more beautiful in the last year,_ he thought subconsciously before quickly pushing the thought away. He'd tried to avoid her as much as possible over the last few days. The last thing he wanted was to be stuck in the middle of some weird love triangle with Allison and Brian. Yet here she was, sitting mere inches away from him and gazing into his eyes. He looked away.

"So….." he began awkwardly as she said, "Hi." He raised an eyebrow and said to himself _Hi. Really? She came over here to say hi! _She smiled and the corners of his mouth curled up a bit despite himself. "How are you?" she asked after a second of silence. Scott shrugged, "I've been better." She nodded understandingly and he cursed inwardly. _This has to end soon. I can practically smell the jealousy coming form that idiot across the room. _

"Not to be rude or anything but is there something you want?" Scott asked her. Hurt flashed in her eyes for a second before disappearing again. "It's just that your boyfriend isn't too happy with you being here. I can practically sense his anger," he added, deciding against saying he could smell his jealousy. _That would probably sound a little weird. No need to complicate things or make her think Brian has any reason to be jealous. _

"Oh, right," she said, now understanding Scott's sharp tone. "It's nothing, really. Just wondering how you are after the fight today….." she trailed off. Scott knew exactly what was coming out of her mouth next. "And last night." Scott smiled bitterly. "You mean after my nervous breakdown?" Allison nodded. "I'm fine. It was nothing," he said quickly. Allison opened her mouth to say something but thought better of it.

"I think you should go back to Brian," Scott added, not unkindly but avoiding her gaze. "But thanks for asking," he added softly before she got up. Her expression softened slightly and she nodded and rose from the couch saying; "Sure, no problem. Nice talking to you, Scott." His heart sped up a little upon hearing her say his name but other than that he didn't acknowledge her departure in any way.

Slowly the group began to dwindle away, the Argents and Brain first, closely followed by Derek and his pack and then Lydia. Stiles hovered looking uncomfortable but clearly wanting to talk. Scott sighed, knowing it was impossible to act indifferent towards him. He could manage the rest but Stiles was different. Scott waved him over and a look of relief passed over his face and he quickly made his way over to the couch beside Scott.

"Hey, what's up?" Scott said, watching Stiles as his eyes flickered around the room. Stiles shrugged. "Nothing really, other than the prospect of a werewolf death match in the near future, which is making me extremely glad I'm just human for once by the way, I was just checking up on you…" Stiles finished trailing off uncertainly.

Scott frowned. "You mean after last night." Stiles nodded. "Oh and it's not just that," he added quickly, bobbing his head as he spoke, "After the fight today, which was _awesome_, I might add." Scott snorted lightly allowing himself to smile slightly. "Aha, see, there's that pretty smile," Stiles teased and Scott shook his head in amusement before looking at his best friend in earnest.

"I don't want to be this cold person, you get that, right," Scott asked. Stiles nodded. "It's just who I need to be right now. But I've realised I can't be that around you because your my best friend. I know I just up and left but I just need to know that I haven't completely changed, ok?" Scott asked, pleading with his friend to understand.

"I know, buddy, and I get it, I do," Scott sighed a sigh of relief. "But," Stiles continued. "You have to let someone in. It's going to be impossible to go through this without letting _someone _in. I was lost while you were gone. We've practically been inseparable since pre-school and now your back but you're like this completely different person. I need my best friend, Scott."

Scott nodded seriously, understanding completely what Stiles was saying. "I know. I'm going to try to be that person more often. I just can't be him around the others. Not around Derek. Not around Allison," Scott finally admitted with a gulp. "When I see her I can't help but think about Gerard. I know my mom's death was nothing to do with her but I can't forget that the Argent's are the reason that he ended up here in the first place."

"And the others?" Stiles asked, encouraging Scott to open up. "I left them. I can see the betrayal in their eyes every time they look at me, especially Derek. I think they understand why but I abandoned them, even if I was only half in their pack. It will never be the same between us."

"And what about me and you?" Stiles asked apprehensively. Scott stayed silent for a second, thinking of what to say. "You stuck by me, helped and trusted me, no matter what. Even when I left. For that I owe you." Stiles nodded, clearly heartened by Scott's words.

Just then Sarah vaulted the back of the couch and landed beside Stiles and casually draped an arm around Stiles' shoulder. "So, if you two are finished with your heart to heart maybe we should watch some television. Too much doom and gloom around this place for my liking lately." Within minutes Stiles and Sarah were deep in conversation about comic books and T.V and music, every minute finding out how much they had in common with each other. All of a sudden Scott felt like the third wheel and quickly excused himself, patting Stiles on the shoulder, hoping that Stiles would see past Lydia for once in his life and get the girl.

Sometime later Scott heard the sound of footsteps leaving the apartment and seconds later the familiar thrum of the blue jeeps engine starting up. Scott left his room and walked into the sitting room, looking at Sarah who was looking at the door with a small smile on her face. "Grows on ya, doesn't he," Scott said with a small, knowing smile. "Shut up," said Sarah, throwing a pillow at Scott with a playful grin on her face. Scott dodged easily and flopped down on the couch beside Sarah, the two of them forgetting about the future for a small time and just talking.

Scott went to bed for the first time in a long time actually feeling good, despite what was to come, knowing that he had at least two people, Stiles and Sarah, who he could be himself around. All too soon he was awoken in the middle of the night with a hand violently shaking him by shoulder. He turned on the bed, eyes red and fangs out, ready to pounce, only to be met with Emily face inches from his. He let his fangs recede, sensing her fear and dreading the next words that came out of her mouth. "Aaron's missing."

* * *

**A/N: Guest: No there's no attraction to Derek from Scott. Sorry if seems that way then I didn't mean it to. :) **

**To the other guest asking about Cora and a vote, what was it you wanted to vote about?**

**Tiothien: Which back story? Cora or Scott's mum? Both will be explained further on so don't worry. :) **

**Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter. The fight may have seemed a bit pointless but I kinda wanted to build Simon's character as a bit of an ass really. You'll see what I mean later on. **

**As always, if you have any questions or are confused about anything leave a review and I'll reply. Thanks to everyone else who is reading and following this. Bye! **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I know it's been a few days since I updated so sorry for that! Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Remember to review, follow and fav and feel free to ask any questions. Bye :) **

**Scott**

Within minutes Scott was out of bed, dressed and running around Beacon Hills in the pouring rain, drenched to the bone and any semblance of sleepiness literally washed out of him by the torrential rain and the urgency of the situation.

The three of them followed Aaron's scent into the middle of the sleeping town until it became harder and harder to track. Just when they started to reach the outskirts of the far end of the town, littered with rundown houses and abandoned industrial estates the trail went cold. "What the hell was he doing all the way out here?" Scott asked, confused as to what bought Aaron to this part of town which offered nothing but evidence of failed businesses.

"Maybe he caught a scent and came out here to investigate," Sarah suggested, looking around at the buildings, hoping the might see Aaron saunter out of one of them with a smile on his face. "Without telling any of us he was going?" Scott asked sceptically. Sarah just shrugged. "Look, we can worry about all of that later. Right now our main priority is finding my brother," Emily said, impatience clear in her strained voice.

Scott looked up as a lightning flashed overhead, followed closely by the loud roll of thunder. Scott looked at Emily and nodded. "You're right. Sarah, you stay and search through the town. Call us if you find anything, Emily and I will search through the preserve." Sarah nodded and took off while Scott looked at Emily who had a determined look on her face but beneath that there was a pained look that said, "I can't lose my brother as well." She looked briefly at Scott before nodding and taking off towards the vast expanse of woods, Scott hot on her heels.

They searched for what seemed like hours but Scott knew that in reality it wasn't that long at all. The vast expanse of forest seemed to look the same everywhere they turned which only made Scott wonder if they had been going around in circles. Every now and then one of them would catch a scent and call out to the other but each time the scent went dead or brought them back in circles. Finally Scott roared to Emily, signalling his position and in a few minutes she was standing in front of him, panting and drenched just like he was.

"The forest is just too big. We have to call Derek and the Argents to help. Derek knows the forest better and if anyone can track a werewolf it's the Argents." Emily nodded in agreement, droplets of water streaming down her face. Scott suspected it wasn't only water but he said nothing as he took out his phone and dialled Derek's number.

**Derek**

Derek opened his groggy eyes the minute he heard the shrill ringing of his phone. He looked out the window and noticed it was still dark and a storm was in full swing. "This better be important," he muttered darkly before picking up his phone and looking at the caller ID. _Scott? What the hell could he possibly want at this time? _Derek thought, apprehension flowing through him. He knew Scott wouldn't be calling him at this time if it wasn't important.

"Hello?" Derek asked in a sleepy voice. The first thing he noticed when he answered the phone was the sound of thunder and torrential rain in the background. _What the hell is he doing out in the rain at this time? _Derek asked himself, his apprehension now replaced by panic. "Derek, Aaron's missing. Emily and I are out in the woods now but we can't find him. We need your help." Scott's words were quick and urgent and within seconds Derek was out of his bed pulling on his jeans and a leather jacket before rousing the others.

Within minutes they were flying through the woods, following Scott's scent, helped by his howling to alert them to his position. The rain had subsided by the time they reached them but Derek and the others were still soaked by the time they reached Scott and Emily, who looked like the just went for a swim with their clothes on. "The Argent's are out looking too," Scott informed them. "If you find anything just howl and we'll find you."

The others nodded and within seconds they split up, Derek with Peter and the three other betas together. After a few minutes of fruitless searching Derek froze at the same time Peter did, both of their noses in the air. "You smell that?" Derek asked Peter. Peter nodded and took off in the direction of the scent with Derek following close behind them.

The scent became stronger and stronger and it was unmistakably Aaron's scent but to Derek's dismay, the closer they got the more he could begin to identify the metallic smell of blood and, to his horror, the sickly, cloying smell of decay. Just as they burst through a small thicket of bushes they came upon the sickening sight. Derek paled and looked away while Peter whispered, "Fucking hell."

On the tree was Aaron, a thick branch impaled through his chest and his hands spread out and tied crucifixion style. His throat and face was also slashed and he bore an array of other wounds. Derek looked to the sky and let out a long, guttural roar letting them know where they were.

Soon after his three betas emerged into the clearing and upon seeing the fallen werewolf on the tree all three of them paled. Boyd hunched over and retched while the other two looked to be on the verge of being sick as well. A few seconds passed before he heard the frantic heartbeat of Emily approaching. It surprised him that he managed to separate the sound of her heartbeat so quickly from Scott's but he discarded the thought quickly.

He heard the blonde shouting "Aaron! Aaron," while approaching and when she burst through the clearing she stopped and stared he brother on the tree with a horrified look on her face. Scott burst through the bushes behind her an instant later and took in the scene in front of him. In an instant he grabbed Emily by the waist, stopping her from running over to her brother. Just then the Argents ran into the clearing, Allison with her sidekick boyfriend. _God, I don't like that kid, _thought Derek before directing his attention on the struggle between Scott and Emily.

"No, no, no, no. Scott, let me go, please. I can save him. He can't be dead. He can't…" she trailed off before breaking down, ending her tussle with Scott and collapsing into is arms, crying into his shoulder and hanging onto him for dear life. _Her mate and her brother gone within a matter of days, _Derek thought with a frown, understanding her pain entirely. _It will be a while before she's near the same person she was. _It was almost eight years since the Hale fire and Derek was still just a shadow of his former self.

He looked around awkwardly, feeling like they should go now and leave Emily to her grief. Just then Sarah arrived on the scene out of breath. Upon seeing the wolf on the tree and the now hysterical Emily clinging onto Scott she too broke into tears and ran to her pack mates.

Derek watched as Scott handed Emily to Sarah and walked over to the tree. All eyes were now on him as he slashed through the ropes around Aaron's wrists and carefully pulled his body from the tree, grunting as the massive weight of the werewolf landed on Scott who gently lowered him to the ground. Scott looked down at Aaron and Derek looked intently at Scott wondering what he would do next.

Suddenly Derek heard the scraping of wood and squinted through the darkness to see the spiral that Scott was now carving into the tree trunk. When he finished he dropped his hand and raised his head, looking towards the moon before letting out an ear-splitting roar.

Derek immediately realised it wasn't a roar of pain or guilt or anger or even anguish. It was a threat, no, a promise. A promise of retribution for the death of his pack mate. The roar lasted for a minute before Scott finished and lowered his head but the roar lasted on, travelling throughout the woods. _Good thing there's a storm or the whole bloody town would have heard that._

"Derek," Scott asked, causing the group and even Derek to jump a little, not expecting him to speak. "Is there a shovel at your old house?" Derek nodded and silently took off. He knew the way to his house like the back of his hand. It was so engrained in his life, in his vey being, he would be able to find it from anywhere in the forest.

Soon he was at the front door of his house and he ran through it, taking a second to look around and see how overgrown it had all become since he abandoned it. He continued on until he arrived at the back of the house and inside one of the many burnt rooms there was a few garden tools, like a rake and hedge-clippers and a rusted shovel that he knew had survived the devastating fire. He ran back to the clearing where they found Aaron's body. He wordlessly handed the shovel to Scott who took it with emotionless, deadpan eyes and lifted Aaron's lifeless body onto his shoulder. "Take her back to the apartment," Scott said to Sarah before turning his back on the group and starting his lone search for a place to bury the body.

"Should we help him?" Isaac whispered to Derek. Derek shook his head. "No, that's his pack member. He has to do this alone," Derek said sadly, watching Scott's shadow slowly recede into the forest.

**Scott**

He drove the shovel into the dirt harder and harder each time. He needed something to do, something to keeping from curling into a ball and shutting himself off completely from the world. The rain had picked up once more and was beating down on him again, running from his hair and into his face and dripping into the hole that was gradually getting bigger and bigger.

_This is my fault, _he repeated to himself with each downward drive of the shovel. _Once again someone ends up dead because of me. When does it end? When do I get something back? When will my life return to the way it was before? _Scott found that the answer to each of those questions was a resounding _never. _

He let his anger drive him on, ignoring the fatigue in his arms as he dug deeper into the sodden earth. He vaguely realised that he could be snuck up on easily and he could end up in the grave with Aaron in a heartbeat if the other pack finally decided to end his miserable life. An even more harrowing realisation for Scott was that the idea didn't bother him near as much as it did a couple of days ago.

He suddenly realised that if it wasn't for Cora then he would probably throw the shovel down right now and hand himself over to the pack that had come here for him. He stopped his digging for a moment, pondering the idea before he started again. _Can't give up now, _he thought. _If I give up then I'll never find Cora. She was my responsibility to defend and I couldn't do that. _He cast his mind back a year or so to the night she was taken, a scene he was familiar with now from his dreams, along with the death of his mother. That was the main reason he drank, although he told no-one that. At least he didn't have to relieve the most horrible times of his life when his sleep was induced by alcohol.

_Cora sat on her bead and read her book calmly. Scott watched her and then his eyes drifted from her to the window, beyond the blinds and out into the night sky where the moon was almost reaching its peak. He could feel the pull of the moon in every cell of his body. He could feel the familiar tingle in his fingers and his gums. The beast inside him stirred, pleading to be let out. Not to kill, that much he could control, but just to be free. He looked at Cora once more with pleading eyes._

"_Come on, please. I don't know if I can control it much longer. He needs to be let free, tonight more than the others," Scott said, feeling his self-control waver with each passing second. "You go," Cora replied with a smile on her face. "I'll be fine here." Scott looked at her seriously, wondering why she didn't feel the same pull he did, why she didn't crave to let the beast free like he did. _

"_I don't want to leave you alone," he said, looking at her now through amber eyes. "I think I can manage one full moon on my own, Scott. I've managed six years alone by myself, I think I can manage a couple of hours." Scott sighed, knowing there was no way of changing her mind once it was set. She was so stubborn. "Just like Derek," he thought wildly before hugging her and taking off out of the motel room, giving himself over to the temptation and letting his other side out. _

_He returned a few hours later just as the moon began to wane. He was in such a daze he didn't even realise the door was slightly ajar as he pushed it open. "Cora, you should have come, it was amazing. Must have been a special moon tonight or something. I've never felt like that before," he said, thinking back on the night once more. Suddenly he froze in his tracks, noticing for the first time that he couldn't hear her heartbeat. Then he realised with a pang that he didn't remember actually opening the door to the motel._

"_Cora!" he called frantically, reaching behind him and groping for the light switch on the wall. He flicked it up and light flooded into the room. His heart sank. Bullet holes riddled the wall and there was blood on the floor. The sheets on the bed were torn to bits and a bedside table had been knocked over. For a minute he hoped she had abandoned him but then he saw her rucksack at the foot of his bed and the truth hit him like a ton of bricks._

Scott carefully lowered Aaron's body into the makeshift grave and he deftly hopped out of the hole. He looked down at the werewolf and for the first time that night a tear escaped him and ran down his cheek and mixed with the rainwater. He subconsciously wiped it away, memories of the big werewolf who was always kind yet firm with him flitting through his mind before he began to cover in the grave.

**Derek**

Derek was lost in his own thoughts during his run back to his loft. His pack followed silently behind him, none of them eager to speak. He wondered what kind of werewolves could do that to their own kind. He imagined himself killing a werewolf like that, even a rival wolf, and he went cold on the inside.

Even when he killed Peter it was a quick death, nothing drawn out about it, he just finished him off, knowing it was the right thing to do. But when he thought back to the werewolf speared on the branch, judging by the other wounds on his body, his death was _anything_ but quick. He was so lost in his thoughts he didn't even realise he had reached his loft until he opened to door and found himself standing in the middle of the spacious sitting room.

Isaac, Boyd and Erica silently entered behind him and drifted off silently to their respective rooms. Derek frowned and sat on the old, beaten couch, thinking of what was to come. As much as he hated to admit it he knew Scott was right, none of them were prepared. While Derek was confident in his fighting ability it troubled him and severely dented his confidence how Scott had taken him down so easy. Maybe he wasn't as tough as he thought he was.

But it wasn't himself he was worried for, it was the rest of his pack. Like Scott said, training was nothing compared to an actual fight and he knew the others were scared. He could smell it off them. He just sat there, lost in his own thoughts until he heard a pair of footsteps approach and looked up.

Upon meeting their gaze, Boyd and Erica's heartbeats quickened and their nervous expressions told him all he needed to know. _Not now_, he cursed silently. _They can't do this now. _"You're leaving," he said. It wasn't a question.

Boyd and Erica nodded. Derek wasn't angry. Not really. After what had happened tonight he couldn't really blame them. Part of him even wanted to run away. "We don't want to die, Derek," Erica explained in a low voice. "We all saw what they did to Aaron. One of us could easily be next," Boyd continued and Erica nodded seriously. "What about Isaac?" Derek asked. "He's staying," Isaac said, leaning by the wall at the entrance to the sitting room. Derek gave him a grateful glance before returning his gaze to Erica and Boyd who flinched under his piercing stare.

"We're sorry, Derek. But if we stay then we're dead," Boyd said with a guilty look on his face. "If you leave then we're all dead," Derek retorted before leaving the two wolves and retreating to his room. He heard Isaac say goodbye and then the front door closed and silence enveloped the loft. _How do I tell everyone about this?_ That was Derek's last thought before sleep caught hold of his weary body.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Thanks for all the awesome support guys. I love it when I see a new review, favourite or follow. :) This chapter is by far the longest and probably the longest I will ever do so I hope you guys enjoy.**

**Stiles**

The minute Stiles woke he knew it was going to be a bad day. Firstly, he fell out of his bed when the alarm went off and banged his head hard off the ground. He rose from the floor, muttering darkly and rubbing his head as he went into the shower only to discover there was no hot water. "Oh my GOD," he half-whined, half-shouted through gritted teeth as he was forced to shower in the freezing cold. _At least it woke me up, _he thought dryly.

But it wasn't just him falling out of bed and the cold shower, no. Stiles just had a nagging feeling in the back of his mind that something bad was going to happen or that he was going to hear some sort of bad news. "I used to wake up every morning wondering if I would see Lydia during the day. Now I wake up in constant fear that one of my friends will be dead," he grumbled as he jumped into the front seat of his blue jeep and ignited the engine and took off towards the school.

He arrived in the parking lot ten minutes later and got out of the jeep, a cool autumn breeze forcing him to pull up the zipper on his hoodie and stuff his hands in his pockets and walking into school. The first thing he noticed was Lydia and Allison standing beside Isaac and talking in hushed voices, their eyes wide.

"Oh no, this can't be good," he groaned before walking up to them to see what happened. The first thing he noticed was the stress on Isaac's face and the dark bags under his eyes. "Jeez, dude. What happened to you? You look awful." he cut in, standing beside Lydia.

Isaac glared at Stiles and raised his eyebrows. "So do you," he replied back. Stiles' brow furrowed for a second before he shrugged off the statement and said, "So why do you all look like someone died?"

"Because someone _did _die," Isaac replied in an annoyed voice. Stiles internally face palmed himself. _I just knew I was going to hear bad news today. I knew it! _"Who?" he asked. Judging by the girl's lack of hysterics he knew it wasn't someone they knew well.

"That big guy from Scott's, pack. Aaron, I think," Isaac said quietly. "Found him last night impaled on a tree and his arms were stretched out and tied all ritual style or something," Isaac said, getting visibly paler from just the memory. Stiles rubbed his hand through his hair, something he always did when he was nervous or worked up.

"What now?" he asked. "We're outnumbered now and that Aaron guy looked like he could take down a few wolves on his own. Without him we're screwed," Stiles said, getting more agitated by the second. Lydia and Allison exchanged a worried look. "Oh no. I know that look. What is it? What aren't you telling me?" he asked urgently.

"We're not just without Aaron," Isaac said quietly after a few seconds of silence. Stiles' stomach seemed to drop into his shoes, along with his jaw. "Erica and Boyd left us." Isaac looked like the mere memory was close to bringing him to tears and Stiles suddenly felt really sorry for him. _They were his pack mates, _a voice said in the back of his head. _The only family he had left, along with Derek. How could they do this? _

Just then the bell went signalling for the students to make their way to their classes. The four said their goodbyes and Stiles turned and went to his locker and entered his code. He was just pulling out his chemistry book when someone tapped him on the shoulder, breaking him from his thoughts and nearly causing him to jump out of his skin. A girl was standing beside him with a nervous smile on her face and a piece of paper in her hand. He looked at her for a second before he realised it was Sophie Jacob, a really popular _and _hot girl from the year below him.

"H-hey," he said awkwardly. _Nice one Stiles. Real affirmative. _"Hey, Stiles," she said with a giggle. His heart jumped a little. "Hey, you're still friends with Scott McCall, right?" she asked nervously. His excitement evaporated into thin air and he stared at the girl dejectedly, fighting the urge to slap her in the face for getting his hopes up. _Not that I actually would, _he told himself.

"Yeah, that's me. Scott McCall's friend," he replied in a monotone voice. The girl smiled and he forced himself to smile back. "Great. Can you give this to him," she said, handing him a piece of paper with her phone number on it and running off back to her group of friends who walked off giggling. "Damn werewolf mojo," he muttered before slamming his locker door shut and marching off to class.

**Derek**

Derek paced around the loft, his fingers itching to ring Scott and tell them what happened last night since he woke up just after noon, but he didn't. He knew that what he had to tell them was going to be the last thing they wanted to hear right now. So he continued to pace, his thought's racing through his mind like angry bees, each one of them stinging him.

Just as he pulled his phone out of his pocket it beeped. He looked at his phone and froze. It was a message from Erica. _Meet us at your old house. Just you. We found something to make us change our mind. _He read the message three times and checked the sender ID again to be sure. He stuffed his phone back in his pocket and looked around, unsure of what to do.

_What could they have found to make them come back and what the hell are they doing at my old house? _He frowned, knowing something about this was off. He hesitated for another second before he grabbed his leather jacket off the back of a chair and charged out the door of the loft and within seconds he was behind the wheel of his Camaro and speeding off towards his old house.

He arrived at the house just under ten minutes and looked up at the charred remnants as the memories hit him like a tidal wave, just as they always did when he looked at the house. The pain never went away. No matter what he was doing it always remained in the back of his mind, a constant reminder.

He got out of the car and zipped up his jacket. It was unusually cold, especially this early in September. "Boyd?" he called out, looking around. "Erica?" He started to feel uneasy all of a sudden, the silence confirming his suspicions. Just as he turned to get back in his car he smelt them. He instantly recognised the scents of Boyd and Erica along with a host of others. His hand froze on the door handle.

"If you open that door then they die," a voice called from the forest. He slowly removed his hand from the handle and turned in the general direction of the voice. He waited for a minute before he was able to discern shapes among the trees. One by one they emerged from the forest, all male he noted quickly in his head before his eyes settled on Erica and Boyd who looked a little beaten but nothing serious.

They were being held by two large wolves, one older than the other, their claws resting menacingly at their necks. Derek counted the group quickly. Eleven, including Boyd and Erica. A tall, lean man with blonde hair and broad shoulders stepped forward and surveyed Derek with shrewd, calculating eyes. He looked to be in his early thirties. "I thought the days were gone that I would lay eyes upon a Hale again. Yet here one stands. And an alpha at that," he added with a smirk.

"Not a very good one, clearly, or else these two wouldn't have run away," he said, glancing behind his shoulder to the two captured werewolves for a second. Derek's jaw clenched and he balled his hands into fists and glared at the man. "Lighten up, Derek. I'm not here to kill _you,_" he drawled. "So there's no need for all the animosity. Yet I will admit I am curious to meet your pack. Quite the bunch of misfits, as I've heard it. A bunch of lost teenagers and even a few _hunters._" He said the last word like a curse.

"They're not in my pack," Derek ground out between his gritted teeth. "Ok, no need to get all touchy about it," he said with a little laugh. "Yet I am still curious to meet them. Werewolves and hunters working in tandem. I've never heard the likes of it. I must admit I am…intrigued." Derek glared at the werewolf but kept his mouth shut knowing a slip of the tongue could cost him his life and Erica and Boyd their lives too.

"You're awful quiet," the werewolf continued on. "I like a person like that. I hate people when they chatter incessantly about needless things. Me? I much prefer my own company and a bit of silence," he said. The corners of Derek's mouth twitched up slightly, silently imagining the werewolf meeting Stiles. "But enough of me talking. Why don't you go ahead and call all your friends. I'm just dying to meet them," he said with a large smile.

Derek reluctantly pulled out his phone and sent a quick message to Isaac, praying they were on lunch break and could get away from the school. He then sent a message to Chris Argent, specifically telling him to come unarmed. He put his phone back in his pocket and looked at the werewolf. "Aren't you forgetting the star of the show?" he asked him with a malevolent grin. "Call Scott, Derek. It's time we had a little chat."

**Scott**

Scott woke to the buzzing of his phone from his bedside locker. "Stop," he moaned into his pillow, willing the machine to shut up. It continued to buzz. Scott cursed and picked up the phone and answered it. "What?" he spat venomously, not even knowing who was on the other line.

"Scott, I need you to meet me at my old house," came Derek's voice from the other end. His voice seemed calm yet Scott detected a hint of stress in it. His anger seemed to drain away bit by bit and was replaced by worry. "Why?" he asked. "What is it?" "I can't tell you over the phone," came the reply. "I just need you to come here as quick as you can. And bring Emily and Sarah with you," said Derek.

"I don't think Emily's in the moo-," Scott began to say before Derek cut him off. "Just bring her," he barked before the line went dead. Scott looked at the phone and sighed before rolling out of bed to call the others.

After ten minutes of protestation from Emily, which involved a bloody nose and a broken finger for Scott, he finally managed to pry her from the bed and get her dressed. Soon the three of them were running towards Derek's house. _We really need to get a car, _Scott thought as he crossed into the forest, each step bringing him closer to the Hale house. When he could just see the top of the ruined house peeking over the trees he stopped in his tracks causing Sarah to collide with his back and tumble over.

"What the hell," she shouted angrily before he rounded on her quickly and covered her mouth with his hand to shush her. "Can you smell them?" he asked, his nose pointing into the air. He removed his hand from Sarah's mouth and looked at Emily who looked at him with worry in her eyes. "They're here for you, Scott. You can't go in there."

"What if they hurt them or will kill one of them if I don't. I'm not letting anyone else die for me," he hissed, an image of Aaron on the tree flitting through his mind. "Besides, they'll have smelt me by now. They know I'm here," he added with a sigh. "I've run for long enough, Emily. It's time to make a stand."

She looked at Scott for a long second before nodding and pulling him into a hug. "We're with you, no matter what," she said as she let Scott go. He looked at Sarah who nodded in encouragement. He noticed something different in them. The way they looked at him, the way they regarded him. He was starting to think that he was _their _alpha now but he let the thought breeze out of his mind. Now was not the time for thinking. Scott took a deep breath and squared his shoulders before taking off once more towards the house.

**Derek**

Isaac arrived first along with Stiles, Lydia who all took in the scene with wide eyes. Then came Chris and Allison along with Allison's boyfriend Brian. Derek gave the young man a look of distaste before focusing his attention back on the werewolf standing across from him. Peter was last to arrive, as usual, taking in the scene with a surprisingly cool demeanour before standing beside Derek. The werewolf smiled pleasantly.

"Quite the odd assortment," he said to his pack who began to laugh at the assembly in front of them. "Don't look so worried," said the man in a tone which he supposed was to try and reassure everyone, something which he failed to achieve.

"I'm not her to hurt you, unless you become a hindrance that is, of course." The werewolf let the threat hang in the air for a moment. "We're only here for Scott. That's all we're interested in. Once he's dead then we'll leave and everyone can return to their normal lives. No bloodshed needs to happen."

Derek stared at the werewolf intently as he spoke. His heartbeat didn't waver once, indicating that he was either telling the truth or he was a really good liar. Derek couldn't decide. He also couldn't decide what to do. Was it his call to risk the lives of everyone for Scott? Derek looked around frantically looking for some sort of sign, some form of guidance but he was given nothing.

Dark clouds began to gather overhead and suddenly the world seemed to be cast in shadow. In the distance Derek heard the boom of thunder and slowly the patter of rain on the leaves began to follow. Derek looked up at the sky and then he refocused his gaze on the werewolf in front of him.

"What's it going to be, Derek?" asked the werewolf. "Are you going to protect the boy? Fight with him even though you did nothing to bring this on your pack? Are you willing to risk your lives for him?" Derek's heart began to pound in his chest. He looked around again and noticed all eyes were on him, expectantly waiting for his answer. Lightning flashed across the sky and thunder soon followed as the rain came heavier, a storm brewing like last night.

There was a short pause as the sound of thunder died away. Suddenly a voice came from the bushes, clear and confident. "Let them go," said Scott, emerging into the clearing. Derek watched as Scott emerged and stood in front of him and his pack. Emily and Sarah followed him into the clearing but they hung back behind Scott, letting him take the lead.

Scott only had eyes for the other wolf, ignoring everyone in the clearing. Derek listened to his heartbeat which was steady and his voice was even. Even so, Derek was sure he could smell fear of the young alpha. _That can't be good, _he mentally noted before looking across the clearing at the other pack, analysing each one individually for the first time.

Each and every member looked tough. Hardened fighters, each and every one of them. The way the two wolves held Erica and Boyd told him they wouldn't hesitate for a second to deliver the killing blow if given the order. Scott's voice rang through the clearing once more.

"This isn't between you and them. This is between me and you, me and your pack. Let them go," he repeated in a hard voice, a voice Derek had never heard on Scott before. His tone was hard and dangerous and every word seemed to be a threat.

"Now why would I do that, Scott? You expect me to let them go and we all toddle off home and no blood to be shed? Is that what you think will happen?" he asked in a mocking voice. "Because if you think that's the case, if you think I would waste the energy to catch these two just to let them go because _you _asked me then you obviously haven't got a clue about me," he sneered.

Scott balled his fists and snarled at the werewolf. "I know everything about you, Lucas. I know about you and your brother," he spat. "I know what you've done. I know what you are." Derek's curiosity perked up upon hearing Scott's words. _What did he mean by that? _

"I've also noticed your pack, well the pack you inherited, has shrunk since I killed your alpha. You don't think I don't know what happened to them?" Derek went cold on the inside upon hearing Scott's words, suddenly understanding. The wolf inside him instantly fought to back away from the leader of the other pack, Lucas, but he held his ground.

"It's true," Lucas conceded. "After you killed our alpha there was panic. I took charge of the situation. I became the alpha. I sought out and killed the weak members with the help of my followers. I killed the weak and I made us stronger as a whole." Derek stared at the wolf in disgust.

"But that's not all, oh no," he laughed menacingly. "Do you know what happens when an alpha kills a member of his own pack, Scott?" Scott didn't answer but his posture became tenser and the muscles in his back clenched visibly. "I didn't just take their lives, Scott. I took their _power,_" he finished in a triumphant voice.

"But I didn't stop there. I needed more. The feeling of power was overwhelming, intoxicating. It was a drug to me and I needed more but I wanted something more than betas. Do you know what I started to do, Scott?"

"Hunt alphas," came the revolted reply from Scott. Lucas nodded. "While tracking you we came across a pack and we destroyed them. I killed the alpha and the rush of power was overwhelming. You've never felt anything like it, one alpha killing another" he said. Derek heard Scott's heartbeat quicken upon hearing that but he said nothing, too focused on the monster of an alpha in front of him.

The rain was pouring down on them now, soaking everyone to the bone yet no-one seemed to notice, too transfixed on the stand-off happening before their eyes. A roll of thunder ripped through the silence, louder, closer. Lucas looked at Derek briefly, a dark hunger in his eye that made Derek's insides coil, before he looked back at Scott and held out his hands. "What now?" he asked softly.

"Let them go," Scott ordered, shrugging out of his jacket and throwing it to Sarah, a grim look on his face. "Me and you," he said. "Just me and you." Lucas smiled devilishly and shrugged out of his own jacket like Scott. He turned and threw it to one of the pack members and made a quick gesture with his head to the two wolves holding Erica and Boyd. They let the pair go instantly and the two ran back towards Derek without a second's hesitation, stopping briefly to give Scott a worried look.

Lucas grinned at Scott and said, "When I end your miserable life maybe I'll treat my pack to their own fight. Maybe no-one will be walking away from this clearing today. Certainly not you," ne sneered.

"That's not what you said," spat Scott, his heart beating faster. _He now knows he's fighting for everyone's life, _Derek cursed. _He probably knew beforehand, though. That must be why he was so anxious to leave and I didn't let him. _

"I said I wouldn't kill anyone here except you. I can't say the same for them," he added, motioning towards his pack. A thunderclap sounded above and suddenly the two alphas roared at each other before Scott ran at the alpha who met him head on and the collision shook the clearing. Derek watched the two, fearing for the life of the young man fighting for his life. _And ours. _

**Scott**

Scott knew he was outmatched the minute the two collided, the other alpha's ferocity and strength stunned him as he stumbled back. He instantly felt himself soaring through the air as a kick to the gut took the wind from his lungs. He gasped as he hit the ground but he jumped up quickly and charged the stronger alpha.

Never had he been so scared in his life. He knew that not only was he fighting for his own life but the lives of his friends rested in his hands. He saw the way Lucas looked at them, the hunger for power in his evil eyes. _This is one fight I will not lose, _he told himself as he dodged a slash from Lucas and slashed him in the chest in return, causing the alpha to growl in pain.

Scott saw that as his opportunity to push forward and he slashed the alpha once more in the stomach before punching him. Lucas stumbled back but righted himself and lunged at Scott, his speed catching him off guard. Lucas bit down hard on Scott's shoulder and sunk his fangs in to the gum before brutally ripping them out leaving two large gashes in his shoulder.

Scott cried out from the pain but managed to tackle the werewolf who threw him off with ease. Scott took a moment to look at his shoulder which was covered in blood before he lunged again in his desperate struggle for dominance in the fight.

**Derek**

Derek watched the ferocious struggle with bated breath as the two wolves lunged fearlessly at each other, any care for their own safety washed out by the adrenaline that was surely pumping through each of their veins. He winced as Lucas tore into Scott's shoulder and watched as the blood poured openly out of the wound.

But what surprised Derek even more was that the wound only seemed to spur Scott on and he watched with amazement as the smaller alpha seemed to gain the upper hand. Scott punched Lucas in the jaw, breaking it and followed it with a slash to his chest and a kick that sent him flying into the trunk of a tree. Scott roared and lunged again and slashed at Lucas's head, a motion that would have surely ended the fight if Lucas didn't roll away at the last second, leaving Scott to slash into the wood.

Scott wasn't fazed however and he continued to press, slashing and dodging at a frantic pace. Derek silently hoped and prayed that maybe, just maybe, Scott could win. Just on cue Scott overstepped in his new found confidence and attacked a bit too eagerly. He slashed at Lucas's face and the alpha ducked it and he drove as hard as he could with his shoulder into Scott's midsection. Derek heard multiple cracks and he winced as Scott let out a very human scream.

They fight did a full 180 and instantly Derek knew Scott was finished. He looked around worriedly and he sensed that the others did to. A tear ran down Sarah's cheek and Emily grabbed her when she went to move forward. _He's going to die and we're going to watch it_, Derek said to himself, his heart thumping in his chest as if it was trying to break free. _If I help him then everyone here is dead, _he realised. So he did nothing, like the others.

Derek watched in horror as Lucas threw Scott sideways against a branch, breaking it. In an instant Lucas lifted Scott into the air and impaled Scott on the branch, the wood protruding from his stomach. Everyone in the clearing gasped as Scott let out a strangled cry and blood poured from his mouth.

**Scott**

_Pain, _was his only thought as he hung from the tree. Nothing else existed anymore. His world was obliterated and all that continued to exist was the pain that lanced through his stomach and burned a fiery path throughout his body. He vaguely heard Lucas laugh as he mercilessly pulled Scott from the tree, yanking him sideways and pulling the branch with him leaving it imbedded in him.

He gasped as he fell to the floor and he could make out the shadow of his friends, of Derek looking at him with his intense green eyes, knowing what was about to come. He heard the muffled sobs of Sarah and the short gasps coming from Stiles. Every heart in the clearing was beating at an elevated pace, except his. His was slowing down dramatically each second.

He heard the slither of metal against metal from Lucas behind him and he wondered that was. "I'm not the biggest fan of getting my hands dirty," came to voice behind him between pants, showing Lucas was clearly out of breath from the fight. Scott started to crawl towards his pack, the branch grinding agonisingly against his broken ribs. He coughed and blood came out of his mouth and dribbled down his chin.

"All this talk of heart-ripping and throat-gashing as if it makes the kill better," Lucas continued on, coming up behind Scott and placing a foot on Scott's back, forcing Scott to the ground. The branch bent and he felt it break within his abdomen. He gasped, thinking it impossible that he could be in this much pain.

"Me? I find it more…civilised to use a wolfsbane coated dagger. It gets the job done. A dagger through the heart, nowhere near as messy. Literally pain free. Although I doubt that matters to you at the moment," he said, flipping Scott over with his foot and smirking down at him. Scott noticed with a small bit of satisfaction that Lucas was injured badly in several places as well. Scott felt pride for a second before it was replaced with fear and pain.

"You put up a good fight. More than I expected to be honest," he said, looking down at Scott curiously. "But none of that matters now. Are you ready to die?" he asked. The question hit Scott in his core and suddenly he was terrified.

He had known for the last few months, even accepted the fact that there was a big possibility he would die but he didn't expect it so soon. He wasn't ready. The prospect of death terrified of him. They said that in your last moments your life flashes before your eyes yet it didn't happen for Scott. All he saw was the manic smile of the killer in front of him and the murderous gleam in his eye. He lifted his hands and drove the dagger down. He heard a girl scream "NO!" in the background at the same time he answered Lucas' question.

"No," he wheezed in a barely audibly voice as the dagger came down towards his heart. He thought of all the things he had yet to do with his life. He wanted to have a family, get married. He wanted to protect the people behind him who were about to watch him die. He wanted to live a good life for his mother's sake but since she died he had done anything but that.

Lastly he thought of the promise he had made himself that he wold find Cora and that he would save her. Her face swam before his eyes and just before the dagger pierced his skin and his hands flew up and he caught Lucas' wrists, stopping the dagger in its fateful tracks. "What was that you said?" he asked with a grunt as he slowly pushed the dagger into Scott's chest. He felt his flesh burn and he cried out in agony and pushed against Lucas harder. The tip of the dagger slowly inched towards his heart.

Scott roared in pain once more, tears streaming down his face. "I said," he spluttered, blood trickling out the corner of his mouth. "No." The smile slipped from Lucas' face as Scott managed to push the dagger away a little. His arms screamed in protest. His triceps burned but that only made him push harder. "I'm….not ready….to die," he finally managed with a final surge of power that came from the depths of his being and he roared a very alpha-like roar while pushing the dagger out of his chest.

Lucas roared in response but it paled in comparison. Scott never took his eyes from the alpha and watched as they went from satisfaction to disbelief to fear in a matter of seconds. Scott ripped the dagger from his hands and head-butted the alpha, breaking his nose. Scott's body screamed in protest as pushed the alpha of him and roes to his knees before plunging the dagger into Lucas' stomach.

The alpha groaned and went limp against Scott's chest, his body fighting the wolfsbane now in his system. Scott pulled the dagger out and stood on shaky legs. He pulled Lucas with him and placed the dagger at his neck and spoke to the other pack. "If you go now then you can save him," Scott said in a powerful voice, hoping it covered the sheer pain that assaulted every cell in his body. "Leave now and no-one dies today," he commanded, walking forward towards the other pack.

"Take your alpha and help him heal. Fight another day," Scott continued, willing his body to last a little longer. Stars swam before his eyes and Scott knew he was on the edge. If someone didn't take Lucas from him soon he knew he would collapse. One of the pack stepped forward, Lucas' brother Scott realised, and took the wounded wolf from Scott along with the dagger. Scott watched as he lifted his brother into his arms and silently they retreated into the woods.

Scott let out a sigh of relief and took a step towards his pack. Suddenly it all became too much as the pain in his abdomen hit a new level, along with the burning in his chest. His world went black for a second and he swayed before he collapsed, the last thing he heard was someone calling his name.

**Derek**

Derek rushed to Scott when he saw him falter, knowing he was about to collapse but Emily was already there and caught him before he hit the ground. She lowered him gently to the floor and cradled his head and gently but urgently tapped his cheek. "Scott, wake up," she urged him, worry thick in her voice. "Scott!" she slapped his cheek hard. Nothing.

Derek turned and pointed at Stiles who looked white as a ghost as he stared wide-eyes at his dying friend. "Call Deaton," he ordered before he turned and crouched beside Emily who was looking down at Scott's limp body. He wordlessly took Scott from her arms and ran to his car, careful not to jostle Scott too much. Derek placed him in the back and Stiles and Sarah jumped in the back as well, Scott's head in Sarah's lap and his feet on Stiles' lap. Emily sat in beside Derek. He glanced at her for a split second before he turned on the Camaro and took off towards the vets at break-neck speed.

Halfway there Derek heard a groan from the back seat as Scott woke. Derek nearly crashed the car as he looked around to see Scott lean away from the two teens holding him and vomit blood all over the floor of his car. Derek winced automatically at the state of his precious car. "Don't close your eyes, Scott," Sarah ordered the alpha, close to tears. Scott groaned, barely on the cusp of consciousness.

"I'm tired," he stated weakly. "I know," said Sarah, rubbing her hands through his hair and looking down at him seriously. Blood was still dripping from the branch that was lodged in his stomach. "But if you close your eyes then you won't wake up," she explained to him desperately. Derek heard Scott's heartbeat falter for a second before starting up again. Derek pressed his foot down further on the accelerator.

They arrived at Deaton's a few minutes later and Sarah lifted Scott out of the car and Stiles was at her side in an instant helping her. Stiles draped one of Scott's arms around his shoulder and Sarah did the same and they pulled the wolf in. Derek ran on ahead and into the surgery in the back and found Deaton preparing some bandages and some sharp looking objects that Derek eyed warily.

Deaton looked up when Derek entered and looked at him calmly but seriously. "How bad?" he asked. Derek gulped. "Bad," came the reply. He heard the doors open and stepped aside as Scott was pulled into the surgery and he hurried over and lifted Scott onto the table. "Tear off his shirt," Deaton commanded and Derek tore away the blood-soaked garment with his claws.

The rest of the group piled into the surgery and looked on with wide eyes as the blood around the branch started to turn black. "Scott, can you hear me?" Deaton asked in a clam voice as he pulled on a pair of gloves. "Yeah," Scott said, his voice was dangerously weak.

"That's good," said Deaton. "I want you to listen to my voice, only my voice. Can you do that?" Deaton asked. Scott nodded. Black blood began to dribble out of the corner of his mouth. Suddenly he turned his head to the side and vomited black blood all over the side of the operating table and it dripped onto the floor. Stiles looked like he was about to pass out.

"Derek, I'm going to need you and someone else to hold him down," Deaton said quickly as he examined the wound. "The branch has broken and I'll have to pull one half from his back before I can remove the rest. Did you hear that, Scott?" Scott moaned in response. Derek motioned to Isaac and Boyd and the two betas approached nervously. "Isaac, hold down his legs," Derek said. Isaac did as he was told.

Deaton looked at the others. "They probably won't want to see this," Deaton said in a grave voice. Derek watched as they filed out into the waiting room, each one looking as nervous as the next. "Turn him on his side," Deaton ordered and the werewolves did as they were told. Deaton got a small wooden block from the counter and placed it in Scott's mouth. "Bite down on that," he ordered.

Deaton placed his hands on the bit of wood protruding from an awkward angle from Scott's back and started to pull, the wood making a sickening sound as it slithered out of Scott's back. Scott's back arched and he started to struggle. Derek held him down with all his strength as did Boyd and Isaac as Scott attempted to kick and claw his way free.

**Stiles**

Stiles sat on a chair beside Sarah and Allison on his right. He looked down at his blood-stained hands. _Scott's blood_. His hands began to shake and he balled them into fists to stop them from shaking but he couldn't stop the tear from escaping and trickling down his cheek. _He can't die, he can't die, _Stiles said to himself over and over again. He looked to his right and noticed that Allison's hands were also shaking.

He felt someone cover his hands with theirs and he turned and smiled weakly at Sarah who smiled back at him. That was when the screaming started. Even Stiles could sense the agony and pain that Scott was in. He saw Emily close her eyes and Stiles felt another tear escape. Scott's scream tapered off into a low, agonised cry and now he could hear Scott pleading through the door.

"Please, no more," he begged. Stiles felt his heart clenching. Deaton's voice carried through the door. "Scott, we have to take out the next half now. I need you to be strong because this is going to be worse. Can you do that, Scott?" No answer. "Scott?" Deaton asked again.

The vet must have gotten some form of confirmation because the screaming started up again, only this time worse. Stiles wanted nothing more than to comfort his friend but he didn't want to complicate anything in there or get in anyone's way. So instead he closed his eyes and tried to block out the agonised screams coming from the surgery, which proved fruitless.

Suddenly, after a few minutes the screaming stopped and Stiles opened his eyes and looked at everyone else in the room. They all seemed relieved by the silence a well. Stiles looked down and was surprised to see that his hand was intertwined with Sarah's. _Huh, when did that happen? _He thought just before she stood up at the same time as Emily and Erica.

The colour drained completely from Sarah's face and all three women bore looks of terror. Everyone was standing now and staring at the three women who looked at each other, lost for words. Stiles reached out tentatively and touched Sarah's shoulder. "What is it?" he asked, shaking her shoulder slightly. He was now officially freaking out. Sarah jumped slightly from the contact and turned to look at Stiles with large, tear-filled eyes.

"It's Scott," Said Emily, her voice distant. "His heart's stopped," she said, barely above a whisper.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Sorry for the wait I've been pretty busy lately. This chapter is a lot shorter and a little more slow paced but necessary, especially after all the last chapter. :) Keep leaving your reviews, I love reading them, and make sure you follow and favourite. Bye :)**

**Stiles**

Stiles' world stopped for a moment and everything froze in time. He heard the words that Emily had said but his brain didn't seem to want to register them. A few more seconds passed and he seemed to regain the ability to think before he dashed into the surgery and froze at the sight he was met with.

Derek was pumping Scott's chest with his hands, shouting at Deaton to do something. For the first time in his life he thought he saw fear in the vets face before he ran over to the cabinet and pulled out defibrillators and a mini heart monitor used for animals. Stiles didn't even notice the rest of them pile into the surgery behind him. He didn't notice that Isaac and Boyd were staring wide-eyes at Scott's lifeless body with their hands on their head.

He didn't notice Allison, Emily and Sarah begin to sob behind him. All he noticed was his best friend who was lying on a metal table in a pool of his own blood with a large gaping hole in his abdomen.

Deaton ushered Derek away from Scott and rubbed the defibrillators together before charging them and placing them on Scott's chest and sending the pulse through his body. Stiles watched his chest rise and then he watched the heart monitor. Nothing. Deaton repeated the process with a determined look on his face. Again, nothing. Stiles gripped onto the counter, holding on for dear life, wishing for all he was worth that he was dreaming.

**Scott**

Scott screamed one last time as the branch was finally removed and then there was nothing. He was falling into a bottomless pit, darkness all around him, suffocating him. He was screaming but no sound came out. Suddenly he felt like he was no longer falling. He felt weightless, free. The darkness around him began to shift and shapes began to form and colours began to bleed in, washing away the dark and sending him back down memory lane.

_Gerard lifted his arm triumphantly over his head, the bite mark clear for all to see. There was a manic gleam to his eye that made Scott shiver. Suddenly the wound began to ooze black blood and Gerard looked at his arm with horror and anger._

"_What did you do?" he asked Scott before he fell over, the black liquid pouring out of his nose. Scott smirked at him and said, "Everyone said Gerard had a plan. I had one too," explained Scott. Gerard snarled and took his pills out of his pocket. "Mountain Ash!" he snarled, crushing the pills in the palm of his hand. _

"_Why didn't you tell me?" Derek asked, looking up at Scott from the ground with hurt and confusion in his eyes. Scott looked him in the eye. "Because, you may be an alpha. But you're not my alpha." Scott heard wheezing from Gerard and suddenly realised he was laughing. _

_Gerard looked at Scott with the black liquid now pouring from his eyes. Scott honestly had never seen anything as scary in his life. "Well played, Scott. But as you know I'm a man that doesn't like not getting what he wants. I don't trust easily and I definitely never trusted you" he said evilly. "What do you mean?" asked Scott, panic in his voice._

"_I took the liberty of visiting your house this evening before I came here. I had a feeling you were cooking something," he spat. "So I took precautions." Scott's heart was now thumping furiously in his chest_

"_You've effectively taken my life from me and now I'm going to take something from you," he sneered before pulling a detonator from his jacket pocket. "NO!" Scott shouted but it was too late. Scott could even hear the explosion from the warehouse. He distantly heard Gerard shout something and the screeching of tyres before he took off in the direction of his house._

"_He was lying," Scott said under his breath as he pushed himself to his limits, sprinting towards his house. He denied it even as he saw the fire trucks going towards his house. He denied it when he saw the plume of smoke rising into the sky. "Maybe she was at work," he told himself, knowing full well she finished early on a Friday. _

_As he rounded the last corner and turned onto his street his heart clenched as he saw squad cars outside his house and a line of fire trucks attempting to quench the blaze. He ran towards the house in a daze and within seconds he was past the first line of police, knocking over two policemen when he saw his mother's car in the drive. Someone tackled him from the side and held him against the ground._

_Scott looked into the grief-stricken face of Sheriff Stilinski looking down at him sympathetically. "She's gone," he said, sorrow etched in his voice. "Scott, there's nothing you can do," he said, clambering off the teen and pulling him into a hug as Scott broke down, sobbing hysterically. _

Everything began to shift once more and he found himself standing in a green field. The sun was high in the air and its heat was beating down on him. The clothes he wore were fresh and clean and there were no marks on his body. He looked up and he saw a familiar figure approaching him with a smile on her face. He gasped when he realised who it was and he ran to her, embracing his mother like he had never embraced anyone before.

"I've missed you so much, honey," she said and Scott felt his eyes begin to water. "Me too," he finally managed before pulling away and wiping his eyes. Melissa smiled at him and Scott suddenly remembered everything. "Am I dead?" he asked in a cautious, hushed voice.

"Not quite," she said with a sad smile. "Although if you keep getting into fights like the last one it won't be long," she said disapprovingly. Scott smiled sheepishly. "Where am I then?" he asked her. She laughed. "This is your mind, Scott. You tell me," she said smiling at him.

Scott looked around and shrugged. "I don't know. I've never been here," he said with a frown. "Maybe not yet," Melissa said, looking at her son. "Maybe it will be important in the future." "Maybe," Scott sighed. His eyes focused on his mother once more.

"Mom, I'm so sorry. It's all my fault. You, Cora, Aaron, everything. If I had just given Gerard what he wanted then you'd be alive. I-I-," his voice finally broke and he began crying again. Melissa pulled him into a hug and ran her hands through his head soothingly.

"Scott, listen to me. None of this is your fault. You were doing the right thing, trying to save everyone like you always do," she said in a soft voice. Scott's breathing steadied and he looked at his mother once more.

"Why is it that when I try to save everyone, when I try to make a difference I just seem to make things worse," he asked, sorrow and desperation etched in his voice. "Scott, listen to me," his mother said soothingly. "None of this is your fault. Your friends are alive today because of you. You saved Jackson and you stopped Gerard. No-one has helped as many people as you, Scott. Trust me." Scott nodded, his mother's comforting words were exactly what he needed to hear right now.

"I miss you every day," Scott said. He wasn't crying but his voice was full of guilt and sadness. "I need you now more than ever, mom," he whispered as she hugged him tightly. "I don't know what to do. Do I keep fighting? How do I keep going when everyone around me is in danger because of me?"

Melissa looked up at him with pity in her eyes. "You're too young for all of this," she sighed. "But you can't give up now. They need you as much as you need them, Scott. You have to return too them before it's too late," she said, cupping his cheek.

"How do I return," he whispered, closing his eyes and leaning into her hand. "You just have to want to, Scott. You have to want to return with all of your heart." "What if I don't want to?" Scott asked and now there were tears in Melissa's eyes.

"There's nothing here for you, Scott. You have to return," she pleaded with him. "You're here," he whispered, barely audible. "Yes," she replied softly. "But I'm not real, Scott. I'm dead. I lived twice as long as you did. You're too young to die Scott. Think of your friends. Think of what you're leaving behind. Think of Stiles. They're what's real, not me," she said in a strong voice.

Scott nodded and as if on cue he heard Stile's voice echoing in his conscience. "Scott, come back to us," he heard his best friend say. "I can't do this without you," Stiles pleaded. Scott closed his eyes. "I can hear him," Scott said, astonished. Melissa nodded.

"You need to go now, Scott, or you'll be gone forever. Think of the promise you made. Finish what you started. Protect your friends and find Cora or you'll never forgive yourself," she said. Scott heard her voice begin to fade away once he heard her mention Cora. He heard Stiles again and that gave him the final push. "I love you," he whispered before he found himself spinning back toward consciousness.

**Stiles**

Stiles let go of the counter and walked to the side of the operating table and grabbed a hold of Scott's hand, tears streaming silently down his face. Derek stood beside him and looked at Scott with wide eyes, clearly not believing what he was seeing.

"Scott, come back to us," he pleaded, the tears now falling quick and fast from his eyes. "I can't do this without you. I need you, we all do." Stiles felt a large hand gruffly placed on his shoulder. "You're my brother, Scott. I can't lose you," he said, on the verge of a full-blown nervous meltdown. "Again," Derek said from beside him, his hand now gone from his shoulder.

Deaton nodded and placed the defibrillator on Scott's chest once more. Stiles noticed there were tears in Deaton's eyes too. The charge went through Scott's body and Stiles waited with bated breath, watching the machine. The line jumped a little and the machine beeped. There was a collective gasp around the room.

"Again," said Derek, this time hope in his voice, rather than anger. Deaton nodded hurriedly and repeated. This time there was two beeps and the line jumped higher. Deaton didn't need to be told what to do. Deaton shocked Scott again and this time his heart started a steady but slow beat and Stiles nearly jumped out of his shoes when he heard Scott take a deep, laboured breath.

Just hearing his friend breathe once more seemed to lift a huge weight off of his shoulders and the tension in his body gradually uncoiled. He let go of Scott's hand and half-laughed and half-cried in relief, unsure of which to do. He looked around the room and saw everyone else bore similar looks as him.

"Ok, everyone out," Deaton said suddenly, pushing Stiles in the back and ushering him out the door. Stiles began to protest but Deaton cut him off. "He's not out of the woods yet, Stiles. I still need to treat the wolfsbane in his system and after that he'll need time to heal. There's nothing you can do for him now. Rest," he said as he literally pushed him out the door and the rest followed, except Derek and Deaton.

Stiles finally succumbed to his exhaustion and collapsed into one of the chairs in the waiting room with a heavy sigh. The relief in the air was tangible, everyone could feel it. "For a minute there I thought he was gone," Isaac said in a low voice, more to himself than to anyone in particular but everyone heard it.

"If he died then wouldn't the other pack go away?" asked Brian in an emotionless voice. Stiles glared at him along with the other wolves. Allison frowned and looked away from him and Chris shook his head slightly.

"Are you blind," Stiles asked in an incredulous voice. "Did you even see the other pack? Did you even notice the way the alpha was looking at us. He wasn't seeing werewolves, or even people for that matter. All he saw was power. He would have killed all of us if it was not for Scott. We owe him our lives," Stiles said in a firm voice.

Brian scowled, clearly not liking the idea of owing Scott anything, but leaned back into his chair and shut his mouth for once. Stiles was really starting to despise that kid, like really bad. Ever since he arrived and wormed his way into their group through Allison six months ago he seemed to get on Stiles' nerves on an increasingly frequent basis.

Stiles honestly didn't know what she saw in him. _I bet people thought the same about when I drooled over Lydia, _he said to himself. _Wait, did I just say when? _Stiles suddenly realised that it had been a while since he had thought of Lydia in that way. Suddenly, over the course of a week she had gone from the front of his hyperactive mind to him only thinking of her now and again. He cleared his mind. _I'll figure that out later._

He went back to Allison and Brian. _They're both hunters. I guess that's a similarity. _But that's where it seemed to end. _Then again, Allison's judgement has been a bit off on more than one occasion, _he found himself thinking.

Things had never been the same between them since Scott left. Subconsciously he had never really forgiven her for siding with her psychopath of a grandfather and the pain she had put Scott through. _Not for the first time,_ he though, his mind drifting back towards Kate Argent and Allison trusting her over Scott.

It's not that he didn't like Allison. He could see she tried every day to make up for what she'd done. She was a mess when Scott left but Stiles couldn't find it in his heart to feel any pity for her, knowing what Scott was going through.

But now their conversations seemed strained, forced, rather that natural. Almost as if they were on a needs must basis to keep up appearances and Stiles didn't really mind. Now that Scott was back he saw the way Allison looked at him, the mixture of guilt and lust. And to be quite frank, he didn't think she deserved him, even if Scott wasn't fully the person he was a year and a half ago.

Stiles was so lost in his own mind he didn't even hear the deep breathing of Isaac on his right or the soft snoring of Sarah's head resting on his shoulder. _Wait, WHAT! _He looked again to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. _Yup, that's definitely her head and it's definitely on my shoulder, _he thought with a gulp.

He looked around and was surprised to find that, in fact, everyone in the waiting room was asleep. He looked up when he saw the door to the surgery open quietly and Derek silently slipped out. He looked around and his eyes locked with Stiles' and then he looked at Sarah's head on his shoulder.

Derek raised an eyebrows and Stiles would have sworn that the corners of his mouth rise a little before he nodded in Stiles' direction and took his own seat beside Boyd. Stiles shrugged and Sarah mumbled in her sleep from the sudden movement. Stiles grimaced and silently cursed.

Instead of waking her or disturbing her she only seemed to snuggle closer to Stiles and suddenly she moved her arm onto his stomach and her hand came to rest dangerously low. Stiles' jaw dropped and the temperature seemed to rise dramatically.

_Seriously, _he said to himself. _I almost just watched my friend die like ten minutes ago and now all I can think about is sex. _Thoughts began to race through his perverted little teenage mind and he tried to fight them but it was pointless. In the end he let them take over and he began to feel sleep on the horizon, knowing full well what his dreams would consist of.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Sorry its been so long since updates. This chapter is mainly just filler with some back story and stuff. Anyway hope you enjoy :) Don't forget to leave a review if you liked! Bye. **

**Scott**

Scott slowly opened his eyes and let out a low groan as pain shot through his midsection. He put his hand on the spot causing him discomfort and felt the stitches that now held the large gaping hole together. He breathed in and his throat felt dry and raw.

"Water," he croaked, still too weak to move properly. He lay there hoping someone had heard him and thankfully Deaton woke with a start. "Scott," he began in an apprehensive voice. Scott cut him off. "Water," he croaked again.

He heard Deaton get up and shuffle around and he heard a tap being turned on. Scott squinted his eyes, his pupils not yet adjusted to the light. Deaton arrived beside him seconds later and helped him into an upright position and pressed a cup of water into his hands. He drank the liquid like his life depended on it, the cool water felt like heaven on his dry mouth and throat.

He handed Deaton the cup and he moved off once more to fill the cup again. Scott looked around now, his sight finally adjusting properly. Every part of him throbbed painfully. His stomach and ribs caused him severe pain every time he took a breath but he persevered. He was done sleeping.

Deaton gave him the cup once more and this time Scott drank slowly. "How are you feeling?" Deaton asked in a calm voice. Scott wondered if the man was ever anything but calm. "Terrible," Scott replied honestly.

"My chest feels like it's on fire and I feel like I was just flattened by a truck. Every part of me hurts. My head, my arms, all of me." Deaton nodded and looked at Scott seriously.

"Maybe you should go back to sleep," Deaton suggested. Scott shook his head. "No, I'm finished resting. I'm sore but I don't feel tired. I feel weak but at the same time I feel restless. I've never felt anything like this before," Scott said, trying to explain the mixture of feelings in him.

"It's the adrenaline," Deaton replied with a knowing smile. "After you came through I gave you a shot of adrenaline before I treated the wolfsbane wound to make sure your heart didn't give out again. It was risky but worth it. It will wear off soon."

"Thank you," Scott said genuinely. Deaton nodded his head. "I'm still astonished that you are able to thank me after what you've been through, Scott. I don't wasn't to be blunt but in my experience your wounds should have killed you, regardless of whether you are an alpha or not," Deaton said with a puzzled look on his face. He stared intently at Scott who felt uncomfortable under his gaze.

"Got lucky, I guess," Scott replied. "I've been ingesting wolfsbane for a while now. Small doses but it probably saved me today," Scott added, trying to get Deaton off his train of thought. Deaton nodded but Scott could tell he wasn't buying it.

Suddenly Deaton grabbed Scott by the shoulder and his demeanour went from calm to urgent within seconds. "Regardless of the wolfsbane, a wound that close to the heart should have killed you, without the extra array of wounds you are supporting. I was expecting you to be out for days yet here you are, conscious, after only a mere….," Deaton looked at the clock. "Six hours."

There was a gleam in Deaton's eyes and Scott knew he was quickly putting the pieces together in his head. "When you killed their alpha, were you a beta," Deaton asked suddenly. Scott gulped and looked away, avoiding Deaton's intense eyes. "Scott, this is very important." He was now whispering quickly. "You need to tell me."

Scott met his gaze and shook his head. "And did you ever kill an alpha before that," Deaton asked as he removed his hand from Scott's shoulder and began to pace back and forth in front of Scott. Scott shook his head once more. "Fascinating," Deaton said. Scott detected a new look in his eye. _Was it pride? _

"Do you know what you are," he asked Scott with a smile. Scott looked him in the eye before responding. "A true alpha." Deaton's smile widened and he nodded. "Precisely. I wasn't sure at first Scott. When you were bitten I knew the wolf you would become, the man you would become."

"I knew what kind of person you were but it wasn't until the Kanima until I started to truly believe." "Believe what?" Scott asked in a hushed voice.

Deaton looked at him with a serious expression. "Believe in you," he stated simply. Scott's head was reeling. "You knew all along. You believed…in me?" he asked astonished.

"Don't look so surprised, Scott. You were an omega then yet it was you who took control, not Derek. He was the alpha, the one with the pack yet everything was done on _your _terms. Like I said I wasn't sure at first. I hoped. But seeing you stand up for what you believed in, sticking to your morals, trying to save everyone, that's when I truly believed."

Scott sat there in stunned silence. He knew he was a true alpha, Aaron had told him so the first time his eyes went red. But seeing Deaton piece it together so quickly unnerved him. He didn't want people to know about what he was. It would attract unnecessary attention. Omegas and betas would flock to him if word got out about what he was. He didn't want that. He wasn't ready for that kind of responsibility.

"When did your eyes first change?" Deaton asked softly. Scott took a moment to think, the image surfacing to the fore of his mind. "A couple of months after I joined the pack. We were fighting, it was all we seemed to do then. Fight for our lives, our territory. It was going badly, we were losing. I saw Alec get taken down by the other alpha and before he could kill him I charged and took him on."

"When I tackled him I felt this power surge within me, a power like nothing I had ever felt before. It came from my core and I felt like if I didn't let it free then it would tear me apart from the inside. So I embraced it. I didn't know what was happening but I didn't think. I just let my instinct take over. I literally felt my eyes change, the colour seep into them. That was when I saw the fear in the other alpha's eyes."

"I almost killed him. I could have but I stopped myself. I hurt him bad though, bad enough for the other pack to retreat, taking their alpha with them. Alec confronted me that night and told me what was happening to me, or at least what he thought was happening."

"He said form the moment he saw me he knew, he could sense it. I asked him how and he just said 'His wolf knew.' I never knew what he meant but he was older and stronger then I was then. I trusted him."

"You see, back when he first found me I was a mess. I was drowning in my old guilt. I wasn't able to look out for Cora like I promised her. I failed her. I let my wolf take over on the full moon. If I had more self-control then maybe I could have stayed with her, saved her. But I didn't. But it was that night when Alec told me what I was, or what I could become, that I finally understood why he took me in, treated me like family."

"If I was just some regular omega he wouldn't have looked twice at me. But he didn't take me in out of greed or need for someone powerful in his pack. He believed, like you. But at first I didn't understand. I took me a while to finally realise he was testing me every step of the way, challenging me. We fought over almost everything but later I realised he was essentially grooming me to reach my potential. I owe him what I am. Without him I'd probably be dead."

"But it wasn't until the night before I killed the other alpha that I truly became one. My eyes were changing more frequently at that stage. I was afraid to shift in front of my pack in case they'd see what was happening to me."

"But then Alec wanted to end the fight we were having against the other pack and soon. Within the next few days he planned an attack. I confronted him, told him it was suicide. This fight was different from the others. He planned the other arguments, controlled them, making me become a better leader and decision maker."

"But this was a full blown argument. He roared at me to submit but I felt something click into place inside of me. My head was saying back down but my heart told me I was a true alpha and I didn't submit to anyone. So I roared back and I felt the power surge through me."

"It was nothing like before. The times my eyes flashed red momentarily I only sampled the power I could have for the briefest of moments before it dwindled. But this time it was a raging tempest inside of me. It was immense, overwhelming. I felt my eyes burn red and I knew I had finally become what Alec had mentioned to me."

"The next day I went to the other pack thinking I could reason with them. It ended badly, obviously. I killed the alpha and I left my pack. I tell all these that I left to keep my pack safe but the truth is there was no way I could stay there any longer. I was too powerful and it was completely against my nature to be told what to do. I knew that and so did Alec."

"We parted ways and used the excuse of the pack being after me. They _were, _of course, but you know pack mentality. If I was truly part of the pack anymore they never would have left me. We were family, you don't abandon family but it was unhealthy for me to be there any longer."

Scott finished his story and took another drink. His throat was dry and he didn't realise how long he had been talking for. Deaton stared at him with a shocked expression. "Does your pack know what you are?" he asked after a few moments of silence.

"Emily does and Aaron did, Sarah doesn't. So did Eric, well, when he was alive." Deaton nodded and then he smiled once more. "I'm so proud of you," he half-whispered, clapping Scott on the shoulder. Scott looked at him with a confused expression. "Why?" he asked.

"For the man you have become, despite all the things you've been through and the things you've had to do. You still almost died for all of them today." Scott smiled but his expression darkened when he thought of the fight, and Lucas.

"Yeah, but he beat me. I was lucky to survive. He was stronger than me, I was no match for him, and even with me having the power of the alpha I killed. Being a true alpha doesn't make me this super alpha, though. I heal quicker and I am stronger but not by much. The main difference is charisma, leadership qualities. The ability to quieten a room when you speak, to make werewolves follow and obey you even when they're not in your pack."

"I was only able to beat Derek so easily because of the power I absorbed, along with the fact that he fights like a reckless idiot," Scott mumbled with a smile. Deaton laughed. "That may be so but I suspect that this Lucas will be longer recovering than you and I'd say that is a small victory in itself." Deaton smiled warmly and Scott felt his mood lighten a bit.

"The most important thing is that you found a way to succeed, to come out on top, even when the odds were against you and you were outmatched. That is something remarkable in itself and you should be proud."

Scott felt better with each word. Deep down he knew these things himself but there was nothing like hearing someone say it to you and reassure you. Everyone needed reassurance once in a while. "Enough talking," Deaton said abruptly, moving away from the metal table. "As exciting and intriguing as your story was and as much as I would like to hear the rest, you need to sleep and recover."

Scott shook his head and swung his legs off the table, a simple movement which caused his head to swim and his vision to blur. A tremor racked through his body and he gritted his teeth. Scott blinked away the stars and focused his energy on standing, which he managed, but barely. He swayed to the side and Deaton caught him just in time.

"Are you sure you are up for walking so soon?" Deaton asked in a serious voice. Scott nodded. "They're all scared out there. I may have won in the end but they all saw me get beat up pretty bad. Boyd and Erica were so scared they ran away. Right now they need to see that I can walk away from this. It just might give them a bit of confidence if nothing else."

When he heard no protestation from the vet, one of the beast things about Deaton was that he rarely judged and he always let Scott be in control and make his own decisions, he continued on and took a tiny step. _Baby steps, _he told himself.

After a minute of gradually less wobbly legs Scott made it to the door and placed his hand on the metal handle, Deaton by his side, ready to catch him just in case. "Don't tell them anything, I'm not ready for anyone to know yet," he said in a firm voice. Deaton nodded his head quickly and Scott opened the door.

The scene he was met with caused him to laugh a little which then caused him to double over, wheezing and coughing and clutching his stomach. Deaton was at his side instantly and placed a hand on his back. Scott straightened up as a few people began to wake, Emily first, looking around groggily for the location of the noise.

Scott saw Boyd with his head on Derek's shoulder, snoring softly. Sarah was practically sleeping on top of Stiles and the others were in similar states, heads lolled back and either snoring drooling. Emily locked eyes with Scott and her tiredness was forgotten as she gasped and leapt out of her chair, the scraping noise of the wood on the floor waking the others up.

Emily crashed into Scott and wrapped him in a tight embrace. Scott was sure he would have collapsed if she had not been holding him so tightly. "Emily," he finally managed to gasp. "Still a little tender here." She quickly dropped her arms and looked at him wide eyes, an apologetic expression written on her face. She opened her mouth to apologise but Scott shushed her with a smile.

She smiled back and hugged him again, this time more gently. By now the others were awake and suddenly Stiles and Sarah were around him, encasing him in an awkward but soft three-way hug. Scott felt some of the tension in his release upon seeing his two best friends. "Almost lost you, dude," Stiles whispered in his ear. Scott grinned. "Never do that again or I will personally beat your ass," he said in a playful yet somehow deadly serious voice as well.

"Promise," he whispered back and he felt Stiles shake with a chuckle. Scott looked around the room awkwardly and met similar expressions of relief upon seeing his presence. He smiled a little and turned to Derek who was scowling at him.

"Don't ever do that again," he ordered in a low voice before surprising everyone by giving Scott a quick and unbearably awkward hug. Derek pulled away almost instantaneously but Scott was thankful for the gesture. Derek wasn't one for handing out hugs often.

Scott looked up at everyone again. "Umm….thanks for staying, guys. Means a lot to me, given how I've been acting towards you all. So…I guess everyone should just go home and get some proper rest," Scott finished, looking down at his shoes after his mini-speech.

The others nodded and mumbled goodbyes. Scott noted quickly that Peter was absent. The Argents were first out the door, Allison glancing back and giving him a warm smile before leaving. Scott left with Emily and Sarah, Stiles driving them to their apartment and dropping them off.

Scott made it into the living room with the help of the two women either side of him. The exertion of merely walking a few yards leaving him exhausted, mentally and physically. "Deaton knows," he said between gasps, looking at Emily.

"Knows what?" Emily and Sarah asked simultaneously. Emily had a look on her face that Scott knew well. The look that says, "I know what you mean but I still want to hear you say it."

"He _knows _about me," Scott said and Emily sighed. "Knows what?" Sarah asked, confusion and frustration clear on her face. Scott didn't want to keep her in the loop any longer and looked at Sarah who nodded.

Scott sat straighter on the couch and fought off the weariness that was threatening to envelope him. He told Sarah the same story he told Deaton and she stayed silent for the whole time.

"So you're like some sort of super alpha?" she finally asked, staring at Scott and making him squirm under her scrutiny. "No, not really. I'm not much stronger than a regular alpha. I mean, you did see me get my ass handed to me today," he said pointedly and Sarah smirked.

"But I do have other perks like more charisma, better leadership qualities. All these are in my nature, part of what I am. That's what makes me different," Scott said quickly.

"So then why don't you want the others to know?" she asked. Scott let his eyelids droop for a moment, his exhaustion almost getting the better of him.

"Because I hate the way the others look at me. They think I'm some sort of killer and it does bother me. They don't understand taking a life is the worst feeling in the world, no matter what the circumstances. I don't want this making them even more afraid of me or more intimidated. I just want to be treated like a normal alpha," Scott finished in a tired voice.

Sarah looked at him sympathetically. "I know you do. Now get some rest," she said, rising from the couch and throwing a blanket on Scott and turning the lights off before leaving. Scott closed his eyes and fell asleep, his pure exhaustion giving him a rare dreamless sleep.

Scott woke to sunlight flooding in through the windows, making him squint and cover his eyes with a groan. "He's alive," a voice said sarcastically from somewhere within the house. Scott blinked several times before slowly inching the blanket down, letting the sunlight creep in bit by bit.

"How long was I asleep for," he croaked, his throat dry. He rose from the couch and walked over to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water and drank thirstily. His body still throbbed with pain and every movement seemed to cause him some discomfort, though nowhere near as much as before.

Sarah studied her watch. "Hmm…..about twenty eight hours," she replied. Scott spat his water all over the kitchen table, and unfortunately, all over Sarah. She jumped from her seat and shouted, "What the hell!"

"Twenty eight ours," Scott repeated in a shocked voice as Sarah grabbed a towel and dried herself first and then the table, not before shooting Scott a dirty glare.

"What's with all the shouting?" Emily asked, striding into the room and looking between the two. "How long was I asleep for?" Scott asked her. Sarah glared at him again. Emily looked at her watch and shrugged. "Around twenty eight hours," she said.

Scott couldn't believe it was even possible to sleep that long. Since he became an alpha he always had huge reserves of energy and hardly ever slept more than six or seven hours. _That adrenaline shot must have really kept me going for those few hours, _Scott thought, remembering how Deaton said his feeling of restlessness would wear off.

"Now that we have that out of the way," Sarah said in a sarcastic voice. She sat at the table once more. "Ugh, you spat water in my tea. I'll have to make more now," she said angrily before flipping the switch on the kettle.

"Did I miss anything while I was out," Scott asked, wincing as he bent over to put the water back in the fridge. "Not really," Emily replied. "Derek's still pissed about Boyd and Erica but glad at the same time that they're back now. Whether it's out of fear or loyalty…..who knows," Emily said with a shrug. "Still some extra hands, right?"

Scott nodded and then frowned. "Wait, did you go and see Derek?" he asked, catching the familiar scent of the other alpha off her. Emily got a bit defensive immediately. "Yeah, you got a problem with that," she asked, raising an eyebrow,

Scott shook his head hastily. In fact, he was hoping that maybe she could get along with Derek, have a relationship possibly. She had lost so much in such a short space of time and Scott knew that it was only a matter of time before the emotional barriers she had put up crumbled and she would need people around her who cared.

_Besides, he may be a grump but he's still a pretty good guy, _Scott added lastly before flopping back down on the couch with a sigh, his muscles relaxing. "No sign of the other pack," Emily went on, getting over her brief moment of defensiveness. "Whether that's good or bad, I don't know. We've all been kinda waiting for you, actually," she said lastly, sitting down beside Scott.

"What do you mean 'all'," Scott asked cautiously. Emily gestured around the room with her hands, even though there was no one in the apartment besides them. "You know, the others. Derek, Isaac, that lot," she said with a frown. "I guess you're kinda the alpha now," she said in a slow voice.

Scott's eyebrows rose. "The alpha? You're kidding, right?" Scott asked with a laugh. Emily looked at him with a serious expression. Scott began to get frantic. "I can't even protect myself against the other pack, let alone a whole pack. Who would want to be my alpha anyway? Since I've been back I've been nothing but indifferent. I may have red eyes but my behaviour doesn't exactly scream alpha material," Scott continued, desperate to convince Emily he would be no good as a leader.

"Sarah would be in your pack," Emily said softly. Scott looked at Sarah and she nodded earnestly. "I would be in your pack," Emily then said, even quieter. Scott looked at her and he felt himself swell inside when he realised she was being sincere. Scott hugged her and she hugged him back, ignoring his throbbing ribs.

"Thanks," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "I won't let anything happen to you, either of you. You two and Stiles are the only family I have left."


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey guys sorry its been so long. I've been really busy the last few weeks. For those who live in Ireland I got the results of my Leaving Cert. It's like the GCSE's in the UK or SAT's in America I guess. Anyway I've been celebrating and sorting out where I'm going to college so that's taken up a bit of time. Also wanted to take a break so I wouldn't become bored of the story either. Anyway hope you like this chapter and leave some review's and favourites. Bye :)**

**Scott**

Scott took it easy for the next few days. While he was feeling better the extent of his injuries left him weak and any sort of prolonged movement left him tired and out of breath.

Stiles practically spent the majority of the rest of the week in their apartment when he wasn't in school. He filled Scott in about what was going on with the others and that the werewolf, Simon, was back in school on Friday with another member of the pack, Max, and that they were walking around the school like they owned it.

Scott bared his teeth upon hearing their names but said nothing. As long as they weren't doing anything then he wasn't too bothered. But he knew Lucas and what he was like. He never did anything without a reason and it was a matter of time before they found out why the werewolves were really in school.

Other than that Scott enjoyed Stiles' company and hit witty humour was making him feel better each day, physically and mentally, but only a little, which worried Scott. The stress was weighing down on him and at times he wondered if he could take it any longer.

His near death experience made him realise just how much he wanted to live, not for himself as such, but for the fear that if he dies then there will be nothing in the way of Lucas going after the rest of them. _As long as I'm alive then I'm the prime focus and the rest are only an afterthought, _he told himself daily, which seemed to strengthen his resolve.

After a few days, though, Scott started to suspect we wasn't the only reason Stiles was visiting so much, and he definitely wasn't the only one enjoying his company.

Stiles and Sarah seemed to be joined at the hip. He picked her up from school and the two came to the apartment after school every day. Sarah was always smiling around him and Stiles seemed to make it his mission to make her laugh, which he succeeded more often than not.

Scott hoped it would be only a matter of time before they finally decided to get together, he only hoped that they wouldn't wait much longer. It seemed quiet now but Scott had a feeling that it was only the calm before the storm.

He had this nagging and oppressing feeling that something bad was about to happen. Lucas may be back in his corner licking his wounds but Scott knew that he was also planning, deciding where to strike next and looking for ways to get to him, break him. The thought of it made Scott sick.

The fighting, Scott can do. But the anxious waiting and the wondering was getting to him. At times, especially during the night, it was more than he could bear. Night was quickly becoming a time of fear for Scott. He was either doomed to lay in bed and think about the impending bloodshed or actually manage to catch some sleep and see the faces of his loved ones dying or the pale, lifeless faces of those that he had killed.

It was driving him crazy. He wasn't healing as quickly because of it. It was driving him to the brink of drinking again but he knew he had to have a clear mind at all times, as much as he longed for the refreshing yet burning taste of whiskey on his throat.

Scott woke Sunday morning after a full night's sleep, his first in a couple of days. The bags under his eyes were not as bad now and most of his colour had returned. He was also feeling stronger, a lot stronger actually, almost up to speed.

He got out of bed and decided that while he was feeling this good then he should show his face to the rest of the world. By that he meant Derek and his pack. With that thought in his mind he quickly showered and got dressed before entering the kitchen and getting himself a bowl of cereal.

"You look much better than yesterday," commented Emily from the couch, where she sat reading the newspaper. "Yeah," Scott said between two mouthfuls of cereal. "Last night was my first proper night of sleep in like three days," he said before rinsing he bowl out. "I guess that helped with the healing."

Emily frowned and looked at him. "You slept for like a full day after you were hurt. What do you mean 'first proper night of sleep'?" she asked in an unsympathetic tone. _Being her alpha has obviously changed nothing, _he thought to himself as she looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, I know but….I don't know that was because of the adrenaline drop and because I almost died. Well, actually, technically I guess I did die. But the last couple of nights I've been stressed and worried about the other pack and what's going to happen and I think that everything was just making me recover slower," he said, finding the words to help explain how he felt the last few days.

"I don't know why but I have this overwhelming feeling that ant day something terrible is going to happen and we're not going to be able to stop it," he finished with a frown. Emily studied him for a moment, unsure of what to say. In the end she said nothing and Scott finished his cereal and declared that he was going to see Derek.

**Derek**

Derek was standing in the middle of his loft, legs spread and knees bent in a defensive crouch as Boyd charged him. Boyd feinted to the right before slashing at his left and nicking Derek with one of his claws. Derek responded by catching Boyd's forearm on the way down and twisting it behind Boyd's back. He then grabbed Boyd by the shoulders and threw him across the room where he joined Isaac and Erica on the floor.

Boyd groaned and held his stomach as the other two werewolves rose gingerly from the floor. "If you all fight like this then we don't stand a chance," Derek said harshly, quickly becoming impatient. Erica growled in frustration and charged at him again but, as before, ended up in a heap on the floor.

Isaac was about to attack when the warning light in Derek's loft began to flash red. Isaac froze. Derek stood still for a second and sniffed the air before relaxing. "Relax, Isaac. It's only Scott," said Derek. The others became less tense and waited for the other alpha to appear.

A few seconds later the metal door was pulled open and the familiar frame of Scott stood in the doorway. Derek noticed the other wolf was a little pale and had small bags under his eyes but other than that he seemed relatively fine.

Scott looked around uncomfortably before moving further into the loft and greeting Derek and the others. He glanced at the three betas and their general states of pain and smirked a little. "Training?" he asked with a hint of amusement while raising an eyebrow.

"Trying," Derek answered curtly, trying to keep hold of his frustrations. The last thing he needed was for Scott to see how severely lacking his pack was in the fighting department.

"Where's Peter?" Scott asked with a frown. Derek bared his teeth. He never knew where his uncle was. To be honest Derek only had his uncle as part of the pack because it was more convenient to put up with him then it was to hate him. Also, Derek had to admit, when the chips were down Peter's vast pool of knowledge always came in handy and he knew deep down that Peter would help if he had to.

Despite all that it still irked Derek that Peter saw himself as above training or attending any pack meeting if he could help it. "Keeping track of Peter is almost impossible," Derek replied. "Usually it's just easier to let him do what he wants. It's not worth the energy trying to tell him what to do," Derek added with a scowl.

Just then the metal door to the loft slid open once more and they were greeted with a low chuckle. "Aw, Derek, don't talk about your uncle like that," Peter pouted as he brushed past Scott with a grin on his face. "You know I view our little pack with upmost importance," he said in a very serious voice.

Derek raised his eyebrows. "Our pack?" he asked. Peter's grin faltered for a second at the look on Derek's face but he quickly recovered. "Oh, lighten up Derek. You know what I mean."

Derek raised his eyebrows higher and Peter huffed before deciding to finally shut up and placed himself on the couch. Derek wondered how long he could manage to keep himself like that. "How long have you been training for?" Scott asked, moving further into the loft and studying it.

"Almost every day since you returned," Derek replied. "Any progress?" Scott asked, looking at Derek. Peter scoffed from the couch Derek bared his teeth at the former alpha. "I'll take that as a no," Scott said in a quiet voice.

Derek shot a final dirty look at Peter before looking back at Derek. "And while you're so busy training them who's there to train you?" Scott asked, looking Derek in the eye. Derek bristled at the statement and the wolf inside of him roared in anger but he managed to keep it in check.

"I'm and alpha, I don't need to be trained," Derek said through gritted teeth. "If you don't need to be trained then why did I beat you so easily?" Scott pointed out and Derek's frown deepened and he bit his tongue before he said anything he would regret. Unfortunately, Erica didn't hold back.

"Maybe because he's not this big bad wolf that you think you are, coming back to Beacon Hills telling everyone about the fights you've been in and that you've killed people like it's an accomplishment," she spat venomously.

Derek cursed inwardly. He knew she was only sticking up for him but she really needed to learn when to hold her tongue. _I'll have to speak with her after, _he thought grimly.

Scott's gaze which was friendly enough to begin with was now harsh as he turned it on Erica. Derek was impressed that he could turn his mood from cordial to threatening so quickly. Derek tensed and waited for Scott to do something, retaliate, knowing that he could rip Erica apart if he wanted to.

"Is that what you really think of me?" Scott asked in a low voice. Derek did a double take. His mood had changed once more and now he looked disappointed, dejected even. Derek blinked in surprise. He didn't expect that reaction.

"Do all of you think that I'm this cold-hearted killer that does what he has to do to save his own skin?" he asked. Derek gulped. He had no response. "Even after I risked my life and fought so that the other pack would leave town, so that they would let you and Boyd go and you still think that of me?" His words were directed at Erica and when Derek looked at her angry gaze had softened a bit and she looked a little guilty.

"Do you want to know why I didn't kill Lucas? I could have easily, even though it would have probably resulted in all our deaths, definitely mine anyway." There was silence once more and Scott took that as incentive to carry on.

"You think that I believe that killing someone is an accomplishment but you couldn't be further from the case," Scott said in a low, monotone voice. He was clearly uncomfortable. He would be too in his shoes. "The truth is that taking someone's life, or something's life, whether it's a heartless hunter or a bloodthirsty werewolf, is the worst feeling in the world."

"Yeah, maybe for a while you might feel good about it but then the guilt kicks in. Whether they deserved it or not, unless you are completely disconnected from your humanity there will be guilt. You start to question yourself once you realise what you have done and what you are capable of. Will I do it again? Does that make me a monster? All these questions come into your head."

"Well they did for me anyway. It didn't go away with time, it only got worse. When I came here first I was a drunken mess. I'm still a mess," Scott added with an unamused smirk. Derek felt a pang of pity for the young alpha. "But I'm not a drunk."

"If it weren't for the constant danger of the other pack and the need to keep a clear head then I probably would. But you don't understand that I see their faces every night, the people that I've killed. I see their cold, lifeless features every single night, along with the people that I've failed."

Scott paused and ran a hand over his face. Derek was finally starting to understand why he was the way he was. Hell, if he looked close enough the parallels with his own self when he was eighteen were undeniable. Guilt-ridden and full of anger and hate, it was all there and for the first time Derek truly understood.

Scott's voice broke him from his thoughts. "The alcohol was a release, a way out. That's why I drank." Scott finally looked up from his shoes and looked at them, his gaze was hard, as if he was waiting for them to mock him or call him weak.

"I didn't come here for a pity party and I don't want you all to think I'm a killer. I just came here to help," he finished, looking at his shoes once more. "Help? How do you want to help?" Derek asked.

"Well you never actually answered my original question. How did I beat you?" he asked once more. Derek became defensive and shrugged. He had tried as hard as he could to forget their little fight. Scott answered the question for him. "I beat you because you were angry," he said simply.

Derek looked at him oddly but Scott ignored it. "When I first asked you for help you said to use anger as my anchor and use it to shift, right?" Derek nodded. "But outside your house you just charged at me angrily and just lost it and let your wolf take over, hoping you were strong enough to beat me." Derek nodded again. He had hit the nail on the head.

Scott walked up to him and he grabbed him by the wrists. "You're teaching them how to use these," Scott said in a firm voice. Derek presumed he must have meant his claws. Scott let go of his hands. "When you should be teaching them how to use this," Scott finished, poking him in the forehead.

Derek couldn't deny the sense in his words. For as long as he could remember all he had known was anger and he used that when he fought and as his anchor. But now, when he looked back on the fight with Scott he could see what he meant. He charged at him recklessly and he got beaten easily because Scott was still in control.

"You keep telling them to be unpredictable but in the end if that's all you do then that can become predictable," Scott said and then smiled. "That sounded better in my head…Anyway, me and you, Derek. They can watch," Scott said with a gesture towards the others.

"Remember, nothing serious and keep your anger under control. You have to learn to embrace the wolf but at the same time separate yourself from the recklessness and anger that the shift causes," Scott said as he crouched into a low position and smiled at Derek.

Derek focused on clearing his mind of all thoughts and emotions as he studied Scott, analysing him for any weaknesses or soft spots. This time Scott lunged for Derek and the fight only lasted a few seconds before Derek was on his back on the floor.

Derek grunted in frustration and pushed Scott away from him and rose once more. This time Derek went for Scott. He dropped his shoulder and feinted left with the aim of tackling Scott around the waist but Scott was ready and was able to brace himself before elbowing Derek to the ground and pinning him underneath him.

"When another wolf attacks focus on their legs and hips before they reach you. With our heightened sight you will see the slightest movement and change in angle. It will give you just enough time to prepare," Scott said before letting Derek go.

Derek got up once more and this time Scott ran at him. Derek studied Scott's lower body and noticed the change in the angle of his hips and the drop of his left knee and Derek anticipated Scott was going to attack his right side. He was right but he didn't spot it quick enough and after a short sequence of movements Derek found himself on the floor once more.

His anger was starting to rise and when Scott let him up he discarded everything Scott was telling him and just attacked Scott like a lunatic, punching and swinging wildly to no avail. After a frantic minute Derek was on his belly on the floor and panting heavily. His anger had almost reached boiling point and he considered attacking Scott as he turned his back to him.

"Concentrate, Derek. You're making it too personal, you're letting it get to you too much," Scott said in a calm voice. Derek wanted to punch him in the face so much. "How do you beat me each time?" Derek grunted as he rolled onto his back and sat up.

"Because it doesn't matter to me if I win or lose, we're only training. Sure if I lose, great, but the prospect of being beaten in front of everyone doesn't bother me," Scott said as he approached Derek and held his hand out.

Derek accepted it and he pulled himself up. "Clear your mind. Use all your advantages, your heightened hearing. Just before I attack you'll hear my heartbeat accelerate due to the adrenaline. Use all these things to your advantage. Look at my body language, the way I move. I'm not beating you because I'm stronger, Derek."

Derek closed his eyes and zoned out, focusing on his breathing. Deep breaths, in, out, in, out. He focused on the beat of his own heart and then the five others in the room. He felt the anger and the pent up aggression drain out of his body. Then he heard one of the heartbeats accelerate ever so slightly and he knew it was Scott.

His eyes snapped open and he studied Scott as he came at him. The fight lasted much longer than the others but the result was the same. Derek ended the fight on his back and Scott grinned down at him. "Better, much better," he said. Derek frowned, still pissed that he still couldn't beat him even after all of his tips.

"Hey, let it go," ordered Scott. "That was progress and that's a good thing. Now, again, and see if you can last longer."

They fought for another twenty minutes and by the end both were covered in sweat and panting heavily. Derek had an array of shallow but painful cuts and Scott had a catalogue of bruises that were only starting to heal. Derek didn't manage to beat him once but he had come close a few times and that made Derek feel better, even if it still made him a bit angry.

Scott grinned at Derek and nodded his head once he had regained his breath. Isaac rose from his seated expression and said, "That was awesome." Scott laughed but Derek only rose his eyes. "Tomorrow, same time Derek," Scott said as he wiped his face on his sleeve and made his way to the door.

Derek nodded his head and looked around. His betas were looking at him like they had never seen him before. "What?" he snapped. Isaac looked at him with a grin on his face. "Oh, nothing really. It's just that we learned more in half an hour watching you fight than we did in weeks getting beat up by you."

Boyd nodded his head. "Yeah, the two of you were amazing towards the end. I honestly didn't know who'd win the last fight," he said with a genuine expression. Derek didn't let it show but inside the words made him feel overjoyed. He looked at the door where Scott left and smiled to himself. He couldn't wait for tomorrow.

**Scott**

Scott was only a few minutes away from the apartment when he heard the screeching of wheels and turned around to see a black SUV racing down the street towards him. He looked around the street and noticed that it was completely empty.

They grinding of the rubber on tarmac had broken him from his thoughts of Derek and how much he seemed to improve over the last few fights and quietly he hoped that with Derek by his side then maybe they had a chance.

Those thoughts were firmly in the back of his mind as he watched the SUV approach and everything about the car seemed off. Alarm bells were ringing in his brain as he watched the window roll down as the vehicle approached.

The SUV was only few metres away now and then Scott spotted the barrel of a pistol poking out the rolled down window. Scott turned on his heel and ran. When he heard the first shot go off he ducked. The bullet whizzed by his head. Three more soon followed and he rolled along the ground. Just as the SUV was pulling ahead of him the shooter fired one last shot and Scott didn't have time to react before the bullet lodged in his shoulder.

The bullet burrowed a fiery path through his skin and into his muscle underneath before hitting bone. Scott knew instantly from the sting that the bullet was silver. He groaned in pain as he leaned against a lamp-post, clutching his shoulder as blood oozed out from between his fingers.

He pushed himself away from the metal post and took off running towards his apartment which was in sight within minutes. He raced up the stairs before arriving at door number 117 before fumbling with the key before managing to put it in the keyhole.

"What happened?" Emily asked immediately, seeing him clutching his shoulder and his hand covered in blood. "Silver bullet," Scott grunted as he went to the counter in the kitchen and began pulling open drawers and with his blood-stained hand before his hand finally landed on a scissors.

"SUV drove past and shot at me, hit me once. Must have been a rookie," Scott chuckled darkly before sitting on the couch. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sarah leave her room to inspect what was going on.

Scott handed Emily the scissors. "Pull it out," he ordered and she took the scissors without hesitation and before he could say another word she plunged it into the bullet hole, searching for the bullet.

Scott gritted his teeth and tried not to scream out in pain. Just then Emily made a triumphant noise and exclaimed, "Got it," before pulling it out. Immediately the pain in Scott's shoulder lessened and he sighed in relief as he felt his flesh knitting together.

He thanked Emily before taking the scissors from her, with the bullet clamped tightly in them, over to the sink and washed the blood off the bullet. He held the scissors up towards the sunlight coming through the window and turned them, inspecting the bullet closely.

After a few seconds he found the thing he was desperately hoping he wouldn't find and his heart plummeted. "What is it," Emily asked immediately, coming to his side and looking at the bullet.

Scott sighed and let the scissors open and the bullet fell into the sink. "There's an R engraved in the bullet," Scott said in a stressed voice. "An R? What does that mean?" Sarah asked in a confused voice.

Scott looked her in the eyes, wishing this was all a dream and he was still asleep. "It means Rookwood. R for Rookwood."


	12. Chapter 12

**So here's chapter 12. Hope you guys enjoy it and make sure you leave your reviews if you did. Also feel free to say if you want to see something added to the story and I'll try my best. I'm at college now so I will try to update once a week if I can but I don't know if I'll have the time. Bye! **

**Scott**

"You're kidding, right?" asked Emily in a strained voice. Scott turned on her with an impatient look. A million things were running through his mind at that very moment. "Does it look like I'm kidding," Scott asked in an angry voice and Emily backed off, sensing his frustration.

The Rookwood's being here complicated everything. Beacon Hills was the centre of a pack feud and with so many volatile werewolves about Scott knew the Rookwood's weren't just here for him. They would kill every werewolf in sight if they had the chance. Once again the lives of everyone he cared for were in jeopardy.

The weight of all the responsibility and expectation was starting to weigh down on Scott's shoulders, crushing him. He felt light-headed for a second but soon shook it off before Emily and Sarah could notice.

Scott put his hands on his head and began to pace back and forth, the two girl's eyes on him. "Once the Rookwood's see the full picture of what's going on here they won't stop once they get you," said Emily, following his train of thought.

"I know," replied Scott. "Do you think they were trying to kill you today?" asked Sarah. "No, I mean maybe, I don't know," replied Scott in a slightly higher voice. "It could have just been a warning shot, to scare me or whatever. Maybe they're trying to toy with me. There's no way to know for sure," Scott said, his voice getting higher and higher by the second.

"You know there's going to be someone else who's taking notice of what's going on here," said Emily in a low voice. "This many powerful alphas in one spot will be too good to resist." Scott stopped his pacing and looked at her with genuine fear.

Sarah looked between the two of them with confusion. "Who's she talking about?" she asked. Scott sighed before looking at her. "Deucalion," he said, barely above a whisper. Sarah's expression remained unchanged, still nonplussed.

"Deucalion is the alpha of alphas, the most powerful werewolf. He is the leader of the alpha pack. With three alphas here in this town then it could be only a matter of time before he takes interest in what's happening," Scott explained to Sarah.

"When you say 'take interest', what exactly do you mean?" Sarah asked in a hesitant voice. "Come for Lucas and me, maybe even Derek, try and get us in his pack. Each member of his pack killed their own packs for power, he'll try and get us to do the same," Scott continued on while Sarah listened with wide eyes.

"But he's not here," Emily picked up from where Scott left off and tried to get the conversation back on track. "And he may never come. But right now we have to focus on the problems that are here, like the Rookwood's. Do we tell the others?" she asked Scott.

Scott thought for a minute. It was too dangerous for the other wolves not to know but at the same time the telling them may prove to be the thing which sends them back into panic stations. "I don't know yet. I think for now we should wait and see what happens before we decide to tell anyone anything. As long as no one does anything stupid then the Rookwood's won't know for sure who the other werewolves in this town are," Scott said and his two pack mates nodded in understanding.

"I'm going back to school tomorrow. I don't like the fact that there's two of the other pack just walking about, it puts everyone in danger. And I'm guessing we'll see a new student tomorrow," Scott said before going to his room.

The sound of Scott's alarm going off at seven in the morning caused him to immediately regret his choice to go back to school. But then he thought about spending the whole day at home doing nothing and it didn't seem so bad.

However, as he showered, the upcoming day at school wasn't what was on his mind. He didn't mention it to Emily or Sarah, nor them to him, but he knew that if the Rookwood's were in town for him then there just may be a possibility that the brought someone with them.

Scott vowed to himself that he would find where they were staying and gather as much information about what they wanted before he tried any rescue missions. For now he had to push her out of his mind.

It seemed like no time at all that Scott was walking through the front doors of the school, all eyes on him, as he expected, and settling down to his first class of the day. He briefly spoke to the others but kept mostly to himself, too lost in his own thoughts to pay attention to anyone else.

Near the end of the class there was a soft knock on the door and a few seconds later the teacher was leading in a new student, a tall dark haired, handsome boy who glanced nervously around the room before locking eyes with Scott.

Scott didn't listen to the teacher introducing him, he already knew what his name was going to be. Kevin Rookwood. He did, however, hear the other werewolves' heartbeats in the room increase upon hearing the new student's second name.

He could feel eyes on him but he just stared at the Rookwood boy who shifted his gaze after a few seconds. Scott wondered if the boy knew what his family did. He didn't exactly look like a hunter, or someone remotely dangerous at all, for that matter.

Scott wasn't naïve, though. He knew how looks could be deceiving. He decided to play it cool and act like he was no one and see how the other boy acted around him. The class ended a few minutes later and as Scott was expecting, he was ambushed by Stiles and Isaac as he made his way to his locker.

Isaac put his hand on his shoulder to stop him from walking as Stiles stood in front of him. Scott looked pointedly at Isaac's hand who belatedly got the point and removed it. Scott sighed and decided to play dumb. He noticed Allison and the others watching intently from a distance.

"What is it?" he asked innocently. "What is it? Oh, I don't know Scott the fact that there's a Rookwood in our school. Possibly one of the Rookwood's that want you dead and you don't seem the slightest bit bothered or surprised by it," Stiles said to him.

"Don't talk so loud. Simon and Max could be listening," Scott said in a low voice. Stiles nodded and Isaac whispered to Scott. "Do you know something and you're not telling us?"

"Yesterday I had a run in with a SUV. One of the people inside it shot me with a silver bullet. When we got it out there was an R engraved in it. All Rookwood bullets have R's engraved in them. I didn't want to tell you guys or make you worried until I had a chance to see what they were doing in town. I didn't want to put you in danger," Scott whispered quickly while grabbing books form his locker.

Stiles pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. Scott knew what he was feeling. Just when they thought things couldn't get any worse now they had another problem to deal with. "Look it doesn't matter now. They're here and that's what matters. You should have told us but I understand why you didn't," said Stiles, opening his eyes and looking at Scott.

Scott nodded, grateful he didn't have to get into an argument with Stiles and Isaac about this. "First we have to get close to Kevin. There's a possibility that he knows nothing of what his family does, like Allison when she first came here," said Scott in a hushed voice.

"And what are the chances of that?" asked Stiles. Scott frowned. "Highly unlikely. There's a rumour but I'm not sure if it's true," Scott admitted, looking at the two boys. "The Rookwood's are notorious for training their children from an early age, teaching them about supernatural beings from when they are young. Not nursery rhymes but how to kill them, weak spots, that kind of stuff. A real peaceful upbringing," Scott added with a twisted smile.

"They say that the boys are trained younger and harder than the women. Like the Argents, the women are the tacticians, so-to-say. They make the decisions, that kind of thing. But it's said that for a Rookwood to become a true hunter then they have to kill a supernatural being for their thirteenth birthday."

Both Isaac's and Stiles' eyes were wide with shock. Scott continued on. "This way they only have the best hunters in their ranks. If you pass then you have what it takes. If you fail in killing a supernatural being well…let's just say most thirteen year old kids don't survive an attack from a werewolf, especially when the kid just tried to kill them."

Both Isaac and Stiles were speechless. Scott didn't blame him. He was the same when Alec told him. He told them that it was only a rumour but he didn't tell them that it had been Alec that had told him originally and that Alec was not often wrong.

"I know it's barbaric but it's only a rumour guys," Scott said to them with a nervous laugh. It wasn't a complete lie as Scott wasn't completely sure himself. "If it is true though then it kind of makes you see things from a different perspective, huh?" said Scott in a thoughtful before walking off to his next class a good ten minutes late.

Scott spent the rest of the day watching Kevin and also keeping a close eye on Max and Simon. Every time the two werewolves caught him staring, or rather glaring at them, Scott received a smirk from the two of them. Each time he received said smirk he felt like ripping both their heads off. He hated that they were here, drifting casually among people that he cared about but he managed to keep his emotions in check.

He couldn't afford to be in any more fights or get any more suspensions with so many potentially dangerous people around.

Scott tried to more subtle when he watched Kevin. What unnerved Scott so much was how _normal _he was. There was nothing off about him. He seemed like the typical eighteen year old, well-mannered lad and it made Scott extremely nervous.

Stiles and Lydia told him at lunch they had exchanged a few words with him over the course of the day. They seemed to have similar reports as he had gathered himself. Scott barely talked to anyone all day as he was so absorbed in his own thoughts. They only time he spoke after telling Isaac and Stiles about the Rookwood family tradition was to ask Stiles if he had talked to Kevin.

After that he pretty much zoned out and didn't really converse with anyone. He kept thinking of ways he could try and see if he was a hunter or not. In gym class Kevin was nothing out of the ordinary. No quick reflexes or increased agility that would be synonymous with hunter training.

Scott considered just going for broke and catching him alone and transforming in front of him and seeing his reaction. If it turned out he knew nothing about werewolves and freaked the chances are he wouldn't tell anyone anyway and think he was going crazy. Besides who would he tell and who would believe him. Nobody wants to become the crazy kid on their first day of school.

The more Scott thought about it the more he convinced himself that it wasn't such a bad idea. But then Scott thought that if he did know about werewolves then he may think he is about to be attacked and Scott could possibly end up dead. In the end he decided against it.

All that was really left to him was to try and get to know him. Of course if Kevin was here on a mission then he would see right through what Scott was trying to do but he thought it was at least worth a try.

After lunch Scott headed to chemistry early and as planned, he found Kevin sitting by himself. Scott quickly walked over and plonked himself on the empty chair beside Kevin. "Hey, I'm Scott," Scott said, holding out his hand.

Kevin looked at Scott's hand and hesitated briefly before shaking Scott's hand. "Kevin," he said. "So how are you finding Beacon Hills so far?" Scott asked, resting his elbow on the table and looking directly at Kevin.

He shrugged. "It's alright, I guess. You're one of the few people that I've actually talked to and I guess everyone seems nice enough," he replied.

"Where did you live before you came here?" Scott asked, feigning interest in Kevin's life. "Well my family move around quite a bit. My dad does some work with law enforcement and he moved here from L.A. after hearing about some strange things happening here," Kevin replied honestly, no hint of a double meaning in his voice.

"Oh…." Scott said, trailing off before deciding to dig a bit deeper. "But I thought all that weird stuff was happening like a year ago. Why did you only move now? Was he working on something else in the meantime?" Scott asked him.

Kevin raised an eyebrow and looked at him funny. "You seem awful interested," he said in an accusing voice. Scott laughed and backtracked. "Sorry, my best friend's dad is the sheriff and I guess hanging around with him so often has made me interested in that kind of stuff," Scott said in an innocent voice.

Kevin seemed to buy his excuse as he nodded and turned to look at the board as Mr Harris came in and shushed the class. Stiles and the others soon filed in after and threw Scott weird glances which he ignored.

"Your friends don't seem too happy with you sitting beside me," Kevin whispered to Scott, a smile playing on his lips. Scott nodded his head. "Yeah, we're a pretty close-knit group," Scott replied casually.

The rest of the school day passed by uneventfully and two hours later Scott found himself sprawled on the couch in their apartment, thinking, while Stiles and Sarah chattered in the background.

Scott couldn't stand another minute of sitting around so he jumped off the couch and announced that he was going for a walk, alone.

Scott found that walking was the best way that he could arrange his thoughts into some sort of order and think without being disturbed. However, he wasn't just going on a random aimless walk.

Scott knelt down in the middle of the empty road and touched his hand against the cool tarmac and the black lines of burnt rubber on it. He sniffed the air and picked up the faint smell of the rubber along with petrol. He began to follow it.

There was no way he could know for sure that this was where the Rookwood's had driven after they had shot at him. All he was going on was blind hope but it was better than nothing. He followed the increasingly fading smell until he came to the edge of the town and he crossed into the woods.

All of Scott's senses were now on high alert, tuned perfectly to any changes. Scott passed by the cut base of a huge oak tree that struck a chord in him but he couldn't identify what it was.

Scott kept walking for another twenty minutes, delving deeper into the increasingly darker confines of the forest. Now the only smell that invaded his senses were those of the woods, the unmistakable smell of earth, pine, wood and…_man? _

Scott caught the scent of not just one man but a whole camp of them. Scott ducked under a thicket of bushes and poked his head out just enough to see the looming figure of a ten foot concrete wall staring back at him.

About a hundred yards to the left he could see the silhouettes of two men holding what could only be rifles by a gate which had barbed wire running across the top of it. Scott would have thought that he had come across a secret military fort if not for the faint yet still overwhelming smell of wolfsbane that seemed to lurk in the air.

It attacked Scott's senses and made him want nothing more than to be as far away from this place as possible. The only thing that kept him rooted to the spot was the sound of a heartbeat, thudding away faintly yet still most definitely beating.

Her scent was etched into the very fabric of Scott's being and now Scott knew for sure. Cora was alive.


End file.
